Suikoden VI
by Lady-Solita
Summary: IS 478. On the Southern Continent in the country of Nagarea, the isolated civilization has begun a steady downward spiral of corruption and darkness. For Daunte, his main concerns are survival and the wellbeing of his little brother. But as the Tenkai Star, he is destined to lead the 108 Stars of Destiny into battle against the forces tearing his country apart.
1. Chapter One: Part One

Suikoden VI

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The Suikoden series is the property of Konami. I just own the original characters in this fanfic. Yeah, the title of this fanfic isn't original, nor is the idea. But since Konami seems to have no interest in continuing the series, I decided write about what I would do if _I_ were put in charge of Suikoden VI. The result is this story.

At various times during the course of this story, I'm going to have reader polls, and based upon the results of the polls will impact certain events and characters in the fanfic. There's one up right now about whom you would like to be the Chiyu Star to be in this fanfic. This Star will be introduced in a later chapter, and based upon how the poll goes will determine who the Star will be. I'm doing this because I want this fanfic to be one that everyone can enjoy, and so that people can have a say about how certain things will go in the fanfic.

In any case, I hope you enjoy! And make sure to vote in the reader polls!

* * *

" _In the beginning, there was "darkness." Then, the "darkness" shed a "tear." From that "tear," the brothers Sword and Shield were born. Shield claimed it could defend against any attack. Sword claimed it could slice through anything. The brothers began a legendary battle. At the end, both Sword and Shield shattered. Sword became the sky, Shield became the earth, and the sparks from the battle became the stars. As for the jewels_ _that adorn Sword and Shield_ _, they fell to the ground and became the True Runes—the runes that all other runes were born from."_

* * *

On the Southern Continent and to the southwest of the Queendom of Falena lay the isolated Theocracy of Nagarea. Deeply and devotedly religious, giving praise and worship to the deity of war, Nagar, this was a country that has had minimal contact with the outside world since the Great Earthquake of 376, over one hundred years prior, damaged the land route between Falena and Nagarea.

But the populous was content. Believing themselves divine and superior to the rest of the world, they lived for their worship of Nagar and were devote believers.

But…then everything changed. And suddenly, not even the "divine" followers of Nagar were safe from the wrath of this violent god.

* * *

Chapter One: Part One

Along the southeastern coast of Nagarea, in a rocky region appropriately named the Rocky Plains, lay an abandoned mine that was one hundred meters deep. Though it was abandoned over twenty years prior, less than a decade ago the mine was reopened…but it wasn't for commercial use. Instead, it was opened to be used as a labor camp for criminals.

Criminals who happened to be _children_.

This mine had been nicknamed the "Dark Chasm" because of how little sunlight could penetrate the massive shaft, and because of the absolutely horrifying living and working conditions the children endured. Children between the ages of eight and seventeen are routinely sentenced to manual labor in this mineshaft because in the eyes of the Theocracy they are sinful, demonic monsters who have sinned against Nagar. In the eyes of the Theocracy, the hard labor is but a mercy they grant these children so they can work for forgiveness from their god and cleanse their souls of evil.

Most of the children in the Dark Chasm never committed a crime in their lives. And none of the children were evil. But in accordance with the religious law of "Original Sin", they were tried and sentenced for a crime they did not commit, but are equally punished for the crime if their family member committed it.

Most of the rooms had been built inside the mineshaft and so they were airless, windowless, dusty, and incredibly dark. Most of them were lit with multiple torches, but it still was not enough to give adequate light. Hundreds of bedrooms were available for the children, but they were small and in many cases they contained three-to-four children within them. Of course, the children never saw their rooms until it was time for bed, so the size was the least of their concerns.

The morning meal had just completed. The bread was rock hard, and the porridge was gray and had tasted like warm clay. The children—all three hundred and twenty of them—were herded out of the giant dining hall and towards the Chapel for their morning prayers. Despite the different ages, genders, and races, the children were similar in appearance. Their prison attire consisted of a tanned long-sleeved shirt, matching pants, and worn shoes that were falling apart on many children's feet. The children were not allowed to grow out their hair so their hairstyles were very short or completely shaven. They were all filthy, malnourished, and walked in unison with their heads hung low.

Guards dressed in silver robes and hoods covering their faces were armed with whips and batons. They walked alongside the children and barked out orders for them to hurry along, and they struck at the children with these same weapons if they did not move fast enough.

The chapel was not as filthy as the rest of the mine, but as it was located underground inside the mineshaft it was naturally dark. A dark, massive statue of Nagar stared down at them from the dais in the front of the room, and the deity wore a fierce expression. It was as though He was looking at the children with disapproval…and condemnation.

There were not enough pews inside the chapel to house all the children. Most were lucky enough to grab seats and have a moment to relax before their day of work started. Once all the pews filled up though, the remaining children were forced to stand in the back. Many were weary from lack of sleep and from the poor quality of their food and tried to lean against the walls for support, but the guards wrenched them away and struck them and they were forced to lean on each other.

In the twelfth row of pews, sitting fourth from the aisle was a seventeen year old boy. He was dressed the same as the other children, and his dark silver hair was just as short. His head was ducked and his dark eyes were looking at his hands clasped in his lap.

His name was Daunte, and he was filled with anxiety. But it had nothing to do with his lack of sleep, the terrible food, or the horrific fate of being a prisoner of the mine. He was used to all of that. No…his worry came from something much bigger.

" _Attention!_ " the shout came, startling all of the children. "Before we begin the Morning Prayer, you will all greet your new Matron!"

Daunte looked up. Upon the dais beneath the statue of their god, he saw the two Clerics that lived in the Dark Chasm. Unlike the guards they wore clean white robes reflecting the Order of the Theocracy, but it was easy to see by the round shape of the hoods covering their heads and their faces that they were low in rank in the Religious Order. It was unsurprising, as no cleric with enough political clout would be voluntarily designated at the Dark Chasm of all places. As per the rules of the Nagarean religion, chapels designated for the condemned were overseen by a Matron, whom the Clerics also answered to. These two Clerics always answered to the previous Matron, and would undoubtedly answer to the new one as well, whoever she was.

Then Daunte saw movement on the left side of the dais, and two more people climbed atop it. He could tell by the sizes of the both of them that one was a man and the other was a woman.

The man terrified Daunte just by his sheer presence. He wore Nagarean whites like the Clerics, and Daunte could tell by the emblems on the man's broad chest and the pointed shape of the man's hood that he was a cleric as well—most likely a _Sheikh_. A Sheikh was much like a Matron in that they served as an overseer, but they oversaw provinces in Nagarea and not just one chapel. This man was a tall man, easily 200 centimeters or more tall. His shoulders were thick and broad, and even with his whites on Daunte could see that his body was pure muscle. This wasn't somebody who had their rank handed to them—he obviously _earned_ it through hard work.

But it was his eyes—the man's eyes scared Daunte the most. With his hood, the man's face was mostly obscured, but the man's brown eyes were glaring…and _hate-filled_. He looked like he sincerely hated every child in the room, and his hands were clenched into fists at his sides, as though he wanted to strike down all of them.

Daunte wondered briefly if that man was their new Matron, but he knew such an idea was ludicrous as only a woman could be their Matron. With that mild reassurance, Daunte looked at the woman. She stood front and center of the dais. Like the man she was wearing Nagarean whites, but by the horns on her hood and the emblems she had on her chest she had a much higher rank than the man. _Very_ high for someone who would have just a Matron's title. Her body seemed shapeless under her whites, and it was impossible to see her face. All Daunte could see was her blue eyes, and her knitted blonde eye brows. But unlike the man, she didn't look upon them with disgust or hate. Her eyes looked half-lidded.

Maybe…Maybe she would not be as bad as the others had been?

She closed her eyes. The hood covering her mouth quivered slightly, and from the silence of the room they could hear her take a deep and then let it out slowly. For a long moment afterwards there was nothing but silence.

Then she opened her eyes. "The air in here is foul."

Daunte's heart began to race. Did she really say that? Was she acknowledging their terrible living conditions? Maybe everything would get better after all!

"It _stinks_ ," the Matron continued, her tone turning sharp. "It's been polluted by the smell of _evil_."

And with that one sentence, Daunte's hopes abruptly deflated.

"I have never seen so much sin and evil in my entire life," the Matron said, her blue eyes glaring at all of them. "Look at yourselves. You are foul creatures, criminals whose very existence shame our holiest citizens, the Cabinet of High Clerics, and shame our almighty God Nagar Himself!

"Do you not feel shame? Or guilt over the crimes you all have committed? I know of course why so many of you are here. It's because of Article Thirteen of our Holy Decree: the law of Original Sin. Do you understand what this means? You carry inside of yourselves the sickness of evil. It's an infection of your souls and bodies that affects your entire families. By the words of our Doctrine, the sickness of Original Sin will inevitably come out and the evil inside of you will consume you and cause you to commit evil.

"This is a sickness that ALL of you have!" the Matron bellowed out. "It came out in your fathers, your mothers, or any of your relatives, and they committed crimes against this country and against Nagar! But it is YOUR sickness! By the law of Original Sin, this makes you just as responsible for the crimes of your evil family members as they are themselves! Because if _they_ can steal, commit murder, or commit blasphemy and treason, _you_ can and you WILL do the same! Everyone in your family will do the same! It is our duty as faithful of the Nagarist Order to extinguish such foul evil from this world, and to quell your sickness from spreading!"

Daunte closed his eyes. This was nothing that he hadn't heard before. These words were the same as the words the previous Matron shouted at them, and what the other Clerics and the guards shouted to them on a daily basis. They were evil children. They may not have personally committed a crime, but somebody in their family did. So the "evil-doer" was punished by the Theocracy, but by the rule of Original Sin, entire families were just as responsible for said crime and they were punished accordingly as well.

"I hope you all understand the mercy the Order has bestowed upon you," the Matron continued. "And why all of you are here. Because Nagar understands that you are children, and you cannot help the evil inside of you. He understands that you don't want to be evil, and He certainly wants you all to be saved and to come back into His graces. _But_!" she shouted. "We of the Nagarist Order cannot simply _give_ forgiveness! Especially forgiveness towards inherent evil! You have to prove that you want forgiveness! You have to _fight_ to rid yourself of the evil inside of you! That is why you are here—to _work_! Work hard towards your forgiveness! Only then will Nagar accept you back and only then will our Holy Theocracy give you forgiveness and pardon your cleansed beings!

"Now pray! Get on your knees and pray to Nagar for forgiveness! Tell Nagar how sorry you are for forsaking Him—for forsaking this country! Pray for mercy on your evil selves!"

The children scrambled to their knees, clasped their hands in front of them, and bowed their heads in prayer. Daunte followed through with the motions, but his mind was blank. He could think of nothing to pray to Nagar for.

Praying for forgiveness, praying for mercy…he had done all of these things for the last three years, and he had received no such things. Instead of mercy, all he had were murky memories of his life before the Dark Chasm, dead parents, and…and…

A loud air horn rumbled through the air. The children finished their prayers and rose to their feet. It was time to work.

As he stood up, a hand grabbed his right one. Daunte looked to his right to see an ashen-faced boy his own age with blonde hair in a buzz cut and pale gray eyes. It was Roen, one of his best friends. "Good morning, Daunte. Did you sleep well?"

Daunte knew he could lie and say yes, be honest and say no, or just give an indifferent response. In the end he just merely shrugged.

"…Me too," Roen admitted as they slid towards the aisle. "I banged my head badly yesterday. The lump feels almost the size of my fist. Want to feel it?"

Before Daunte could respond, a shout reached them. "Daunte! Roen!"

A girl their age hurried over to them with surprising energy, followed by another teenage boy. She was smiling, though Daunte wondered _how_ she could smile, and her ebony complexion seemed to glow even in the repugnant environment of the Chasm. Her auburn hair was very short, and if she grew it out it would probably be curly, and her dark eyes were kind but weary. Her name was Felicity, and she somehow always mustered the strength to stay moderately cheerful in the hellish environment of the Dark Chasm.

"How are you two today?" she asked them. "Did you see today's assignments? I'm working on the Upper Tier! I might actually get to see some sunlight today!"

"Upper Tier?" Roen asked. He laughed slightly. "I'm scheduled to work up there too! We might get lucky and be paired in the same work group!"

"You're lucky enough anyways." The other boy managed a smile. His hair was black but his eyes were blue, and he always had a friendly disposition. His name was Kass, and he was Daunte's roommate. "I've been scheduled to work at the Lower Tier, pushing the mining carts."

"It's hard work though," Roen said. "And with that kind of hard work you'll earn your forgiveness soon enough."

"So Daunte," Kass said, looking at the boy. "Where are you scheduled to work today?" His change of subject did not go unnoticed amongst the four of them.

The Dark Chasm technically had twelve levels, with the Upper Tier at the top (though not _right_ at the top because the officials didn't want the children to escape), followed by Tiers One through Ten, and then the Lower Tier at the very bottom. Daunte knew he was scheduled to work on Tier Seven. But before he could reply, there was a sudden shout. " _HEY_!"

All four of them flinched as a guard rounded upon them. The guard already had his leather whip out. Daunte felt his shoulder blades ache with anticipation. "This isn't a social gathering, you heathens! Get moving and get to work! You!" the guard jabbed Daunte hard in the shoulder with the whip's grip. "Don't think we didn't notice!"

"N-Notice what?" Roen asked quietly.

"Was I speaking to you?!" the guard snapped. He swung the whip at Roen, and the side of it cracked against Roen's left arm. Roen hissed in pain, and hugged the appendage close to him. The blow hurt considerably, but the boy was far too use to the pain of it to scream from the blow. "Now you!" the guard rounded upon Daunte again. "Where is he?! He wasn't at breakfast and he sure as hell isn't here!"

"Who are you talking a—" Kass began, before he got a taste of the whip on his arm as well.

"Did you suddenly lose your voice?!" the guard yelled at Daunte. "Since when did you need your heathen friends to speak for you?!" the guard stepped close, glaring and snarling into Daunte's face. "I'm talking about your _brother,_ boy. I haven't seen a hair of that little brat since yesterday morning! Where is he?! Are you hiding him?!"

Daunte stared at the man. His throat was tight, making it difficult to speak. But…but he didn't want his friends to be hurt anymore. And he certainly didn't want his brother to be hurt because of him.

So he swallowed thickly, and found his voice. "Arin…is sick."

The guard's eyes narrowed into slits. " _Sick_?!"

"S-Sick," Daunte repeated calmly. He fished around into his pocket and pulled out a note. "T-This is a note from Dr. Yulin. He—"

"I don't care about that rubbish!" the guard hollered in Daunte's face. "Your brother better get up and start working, or else—"

"What is the meaning of this?"

The guard jumped away from Daunte, and Daunte stiffened as the Matron approached them. The scary giant of a man followed behind her. "L-Lady Matron! Sheikh Sloan Faakhir!" the guard sputtered, addressing the Matron and the man respectively. "F-Forgive me shouting inside the Chapel, but these heathens are evading responsibility!"

"N-No we're not!" Felicity cried out, her smile fading and terror flooding her face.

"And this one!" the guard continued, pointing at Daunte. "His brother is lazy and hiding today!"

Daunte couldn't think. He could hold his tongue and suffer consequences he didn't deserve, or he could deny the accusations and possibly face a beating later. Neither one sounded pleasant, but he couldn't keep quiet about this. "Lady Matron!" he called out, bowing to the woman. "I-I apologize for Arin's absence, but he is sick! Very, very sick! Look, here!" he held out the note to her. "T-This is a note from Dr. Yulin! I had to take Arin to him last night because Arin stopped breathing! Dr. Yulin was able to stabilize him, but he's still unconscious! Dr. Yulin implicitly told me Arin cannot move or his condition will deteriorate again!"

"Oh no," Felicity breathed, pressing a hand to her throat.

"I-I can vouch for him," Kass added, stepping forward. "I share a room with Daunte and Arin, and Arin's breathing was so awful last night! Then all of a sudden he just stopped breathing, and we had to rush him to Dr. Yulin! When Dr. Yulin tended to him, Arin started coughing up black stuff! He's _really_ sick, Lady Matron!"

The Matron said nothing, but she took Daunte's note. Everyone held their breath in silence as she unfolded it and read it.

After several moments of silence, the Matron looked up. "Before coming here I stopped by the infirmary and read several of Dr. Yulin's reports. This is his handwriting."

Daunte breathed out a sigh of relief. The Matron gave the guard a dark look. "Before you make such a ruckus on holy ground, at least take the time to investigate claims. Particularly when this child has a legitimate note."

"F-Forgive me, Lady Matron!" the guard sputtered, bowing deeply.

The Matron turned back to Daunte. "I accept Arin's excuse, but that doesn't change the fact that he is a sinner who must work off the evil inside of him."

Daunte stiffened, and his stomach twisted up. He didn't like hearing someone refer to his little brother as evil. Arin wasn't evil. He was just a poor nine year old child, who was trying to survive just like everybody else.

But Daunte knew he couldn't correct this woman without facing dire consequences.

"But you seem to be in adequate shape today," the Matron said, looking Daunte over. "So, as he _is_ your blood relative and thus share in his evil, then you should have no problem working _double_ today to make up for his absence."

"D-Double?!" Roen cried out.

The Matron looked at him. "Would you like to have a double workload too?"

"Lady Matron," Daunte said, drawing her attention back towards him. "I understand. I'll take on the double workload today to make up for Arin's absence."

"Good," the Matron said. "Then you shouldn't be wasting time here then socializing, should you?"

The four of them murmured their acknowledgments and hurried after the rest of the children out of the Chapel. Daunte knew he should dread the upcoming workday, but he was far too concerned about other matters.

 _It's okay. It's going to be okay. I need to work hard to make sure I stay alive. To make sure Arin stays alive._

* * *

The sun was shining that morning, but Tier Seven was still deep inside the Chasm and so Daunte knew he couldn't enjoy the sunlight. Particularly with his doubled workload.

Roen and Felicity _had_ been lucky enough to be assigned to the same work group that day and took a lift up to the Upper Tier. Kass took another lift to the very bottom of the Chasm with other children to mind the mining carts, but he seemed cheerful and even waved to Daunte as the lift descended. "See you at dinner!"

"There won't be dinnertime for you," a guard rasped, shoving hard at Daunte's shoulder. "You're not allowed to stop working until we tell you to!"

Daunte didn't argue, and gathered his tools. He was directed deep into Tier Seven's tunnel, where four other children of various ages and sizes were already digging with shovels and pick axes. Daunte faced the wall to his left and slid on his tattered work gloves. He reached for his pick axe, but his fingers trembled very slightly around the handle and he had a difficult time gripping it. He steadied his breathing and squeezed his palms around the handle in order to pick it up.

"Get to work!" the same guard as before shouted, cracking the whip sharply against Daunte's upper back. The shock of the blow caused Daunte to drop the pick axe, but he quickly picked it back up and began hammering at the wall with it. The guard was satisfied and left him alone, only to turn his attention on a boy who couldn't have been older than ten years old. "Stop moving so slow!"

Daunte looked at the other children in the tunnel. Nobody spoke or made a sound, and all of them kept their heads ducked. A feeling of madness overtook Daunte briefly as he gazed at the guard's turned back, and he almost turned the pick axe on the guard. He could try and fight the man and then steal his weapons, and go and get Arin—

"Keep digging!" the guard shouted to them as he stalked towards the mouth of the tunnel. "And if I see anyone slacking off, I'll send you down to the bottom of the Chasm! And _not_ in one of the lifts!" he laughed at his own humorless joke and was out of sight.

Even without the guard there, the children worked in silence and didn't ease up on their digging. Daunte almost cursed his missed opportunity, but he knew he had to think rationally. That was just one sadistic guard. He could probably get the better of the man, but he certainly wouldn't be able to get the better of the rest of the guards.

And the Sheikh—the giant man who had been with the Matron. If that man got his hands on Daunte, Daunte knew that he would be dead in an instant. Then _nobody_ would be able to help Arin.

 _It's okay, Daunte. Just keep your head down and work. You need to keep working in order to keep Arin. In order to keep yourself alive._

It was still mind-numbing, tedious work. Daunte did not moved from his spot for the entire day, digging and digging at the hole he'd made in the wall. The children around him were no different, similarly digging into the walls. Outside the tunnel in the Chasm, the other hundreds of children were also doing similar manual labor. Endless digging, unloading and reloading mining carts, manually pulling lifts of supplies and rocks to the tiers above. Daunte lost track of time as he repeated the same motions with his increasingly sore arms and tired body. But he didn't stop working. He _couldn't_ stop working.

It was impossible to tell the time, but many hours had surely passed when the moderate silence was interrupted by a hideous scream, followed by many other screams from outside the tunnel inside the mouth of the Chasm itself. Daunte paused briefly in his work, as did the children around him, but the guard resurfaced with his whip ready. "Get back to work, all of you!"

Daunte felt nauseas as the screams multiplied and grew higher in volume. He bit down on his lower lips and squeezed his eyes shut, stabbing into the wall with his pick axe with faster strokes. Something terrible had surely happened. But with the horrific conditions of the mineshaft, he knew it was inevitable that something bad would happen.

 _Please let them be all right!_ He didn't know if that was a simple wish or a prayer.

Very gradually, the screams dissipated and the Chasm was filled with silence once more. The silence alleviated Daunte's stress very slightly, but not enough to keep him from wondering what had happened. He kept his focus on digging, and watching the shadows on the walls. At the start of the morning the shadows had been small due to the presence of light. But they grew larger and larger and the light grew dimmer and dimmer, signifying the passage of time. When lit torches were brought into the tunnel, Daunte knew that it was nearly the end of the work day.

Sure enough, the guard shouted, "All right you heathens! Hurry up and get out of there!"

Daunte was moving automatically, and gathered his tools with the rest of the children. As he turned to head out though, he was jabbed in the shoulder hard with a baton. "Oh, no you don't. You're working _double_ today, remember heathen? Get your worthless ass back in there!"

Daunte almost glared at the guard, but he knew it wasn't worth losing a few teeth over. So he did what he was told and turned back around to head back to his work spot.

But as he turned, that was when he heard the chatter from other children.

"—so awful!"

"The mining cart really derailed?!"

"Byron said it rolled over at least ten kids!"

Daunte closed his eyes and shuddered. A derailing mine cart. It was no wonder considering the fact that the people in charge didn't properly take care of the place, but it was still so shocking…and horrifying. And _ten kids_ had been hit by the runaway cart! With the already deplorable conditions of the Chasm, there was no way so many children would receive proper medical attention.

Particularly since Dr. Yulin was the _only_ doctor in the Dark Chasm.

His breathing was ragged as he reached his spot. He yanked his gloves back on and grabbed his shovel this time. He didn't bother digging; he started stabbing into the wall in rapid succession. He was filled with anger at everything going on and there wasn't anything he could do about it. He felt helpless, and he didn't want to be. He wanted to feel right in his own skin. He wanted Arin to be healthy again.

He wanted to get the _hell_ out of the Dark Chasm.

Daunte slammed the shovel into the wall and his stomach dropped as he heard an ominous 'crunch' sound. The dirt wall suddenly gave way, revealing a hole that was as high as Daunte's waist. Daunte was so startled by the sudden hole that he lost his already fragile grip on the shovel and it flew into the hole. Daunte himself almost fell into the hole but he managed to steady himself by planting his hands on either side of the hole. He struggled to catch his breath as he gaped at the strange thing he created.

And inside the hole, he heard his shovel impact onto the ground. The sound of it was…strange. It didn't sound like the shovel hit dirt. The sound was much sharper—like it had hit _stone_.

Daunte quickly looked up the tunnel to see if the guards were nearby. He saw their shadows moving around the mouth of the tunnel, which indicated to him that they were standing guard for him but not watching him at all. He let out a short breath and looked back into the hole. It was impossible to see inside, but—but it was strange. The air inside the hole smelled musty. Not like the smell of rot, but almost like a room that had been sealed off.

Wait—a _room_?!

Daunte watched the tunnel carefully to make sure the guards weren't coming down it and grabbed a torch. He held it in both hands and tried to will his hands to keep it steady so he wouldn't drop it. His heart was pounding and he swallowed thickly. This was the first time in all his time in the Dark Chasm that he ever discovered something like this. A hidden room inside the mineshaft, undiscovered even when it'd been open for commercial use. He held the torch steady and carefully stuck it inside the hole. Even with the sudden light source, he couldn't see inside the room. But—But it was strange. He thought he saw the light reflecting on a glistening surface. A shiny surface that was dark blue, almost purple.

"Hey, heathen!" Daunte was startled by the shout, and almost dropped the torch. "I don't hear you working! Do you want to be in there all night?!"

Daunte quickly reset the torch in its holder and grabbed his pick axe. He dug into the wall beside the hole and kept his head low. _Please don't see the hole, please don't see the hole!_ He didn't know why he wanted to hide the hole, and he was certain that he would receive another assigned area the following morning and probably wouldn't ever see this hole again. But he had the feeling that this discovery shouldn't be shared. He needed to keep it to himself.

Luckily for Daunte, the guard didn't come all the way down the tunnel. He paused when he saw Daunte working, shouted some more insults at the teenager, and went back the way he came.

Daunte created a lot of noise to mask the fact that he had stopped digging to oversee his find once more. If he told the Matron about the hole, and the room he had discovered, then perhaps the Matron would count that as his penance and let Daunte and Arin go. But even as he thought of this possibility, he had his doubts. He had seen it before, where children were let go after having worked off their "sins", but they did not release the whole families. Daunte remembered less than two years prior where a boy was let go, but his two sisters were not. And for all his begging and pleading the Matron refused to let his sisters go and he was dragged out of the Chasm while the sisters were forced to work.

And one of the sisters…not long afterwards she had died from exhaustion. Daunte had a horrible feeling that even if they deemed him as having successfully worked off his "sin", that they probably wouldn't send Arin out with him.

 _There's more to it than that. I found this hole and this room for a reason. I can't risk them separating Arin and me. I'm sure this will come in handy for me._

Daunte was lucky that the hole wasn't so wide so that he could hide it properly. He smoothed the dirt around the digging area as much as he could so that the wall looked undisturbed. Then he carefully tried to reconstruct the dirt that had been in front of the hole before. He was only partially successful, but the dirt kept collapsing into his lap. As a last resort, he grabbed a crate nearby and placed it in front of the hole. It only covered the hole partially, but with the light dim enough as it was he was sure nobody would be able to see the hole unless they were looking for it.

He didn't know what he would do with this find, but he knew it wasn't wise to make it public. All he needed was a little time to think about it and what he would do.

 _It's not like I have much else to ponder over anyways._

* * *

By the time Daunte was finally relieved of his work, he estimated that he had been working for at least thirteen hours. It was deep in the night and hard to see, but Daunte got a brief glimpse of the sky inside the Chasm and saw a dark sky full of stars. It was amazing how something so simple could lift his spirits so greatly.

The dining hall was closed, but Daunte was far too tired to eat dinner. His eyes were half-lidded as he turned to the guard escorting him. "M…May I visit the infirmary?"

"Dr. Yulin is performing surgery right now so there's no use trying to fake a sickness," the guard responded harshly. "But if you're visiting your worthless brother don't take too long. It's almost time for curfew."

"I-I understand." Daunte bowed and hurried in the direction of the infirmary. The guard didn't follow him, and he was glad to be by himself. As he neared the infirmary though, his footsteps slowed as a familiar sound reached him.

Crying. Lot and lots of crying.

Daunte hesitantly entered the infirmary and froze in his tracks. The infirmary was too small and ill-equipped for the large population of the Dark Chasm, and never was it more apparent than this moment. Every bed was filled with an injured child, no doubt from the accident earlier that day. All of the children were wrapped with surgical gauze, though some of the gauze was soaked with blood. Several children had splints on their arms from broken bones. One or two had gauze wrapped all the way around their heads, indicating broken jaws. There were many bruised and cut faces. All of the children were groaning and crying, some were sobbing loudly and others didn't have the strength to whimper.

Daunte looked at each of the faces, and he felt horrible for the sudden relief he felt. _I don't see Kass. So Kass didn't get injured._

Daunte walked down the row of beds until he found Arin. Arin was the only child who was silent, but that didn't give Daunte any reassurance. The boy looked so small inside the bed. His black hair starkly contrasted his translucent complexion. His mouth was white and there were dark bags under his eyes. His breathing looked shallow and heavy, and with each short puff of breath the boy took, it was accompanied by a deep wheeze.

Daunte knelt down beside his little brother and reached under the blanket for Arin's hand. His hand felt cold and clammy. "Hey," he said softly. "Arin, can you hear me?"

Arin didn't respond. His eyes remained closed and he continued to struggle to breathe even in his sleep. "T-That's okay, you don't need to talk. Just stay here and concentrate on getting better, Arin. I'm working hard enough for the both of us. Just you wait, we'll be out of here in no time."

The words felt like a bitter sting in Daunte's throat. He leaned down and gave Arin and quick hug. The boy felt thin and unnatural in his arms. "Everything will be okay. I'm here for you, and I won't let you die. A-And I just know that Mom and Dad won't let you leave either."

" _Daunte."_

Daunte opened his eyes. He sucked in a sharp breath as he looked around. He knew he was imagining things, but that voice had been so real to him. It'd been so long since he had seen her that he'd forgotten her face, but Daunte knew her voice. The voice of his mother.

" _Daunte, you mustn't let yourself be discouraged. Believe in the Nagarean Faith. The_ _ **true**_ _Nagarean Faith, not the Faith twisted up by the High Clerics."_

He remembered her hands. They were so soft and delicate. Even when her fingers brushed over the text of an aging Scripture it looked so beautiful when her fingers stroked the pages. And he remembered leaning into her lap as she traced her fingers over the text on the pages.

" _Here it is—'for the sickness of evil in Man originates in the blood. And the evil of Man is spread through blood, and the origin of sin is passed through the blood'. You see Daunte, this is where the idea of Original Sin comes from. It's not an actual doctrine in the Scriptures, but more or less a teaching within a single paragraph on a single page._

" _But look here what follows—'The evil itself is Man itself, for Man is naturally sinful. This is why Nagar is a God of War—because he fights to rid the evil within Man. But all of those who come into his grace, though naturally evil themselves, are saved and awakened because they are aware of the evil within and fight to expunge the evil within themselves and the evil within the world'. Do you see how the Clerics have twisted the idea of Original Sin? It's not that we have betrayed Nagar—the sin is that we are naturally sinful people. This whole idea of Original Sin is nothing more than to keep all of us in line. They just misconstrue wha the Scriptures say in order to beat everyone into submission."_

That was what made being in the Dark Chasm so difficult for Daunte. Because he believed in his mother and he believed what she had said. Original Sin was a farce, but people honestly believed it and so they were forced to work off their "sin" in order to appease the High Clerics.

But it was so hard to keep working when Daunte knew they were working around a giant _lie_.

He let Arin go and settled the child back into his bed. As he stood up something caught his eye and he paused. At the far back of the infirmary where there was no light, he saw a large object wrapped and tied up in a white sheet on top of an examination table. He stared at the object for several long moments before realizing dawned on him and he covered his mouth.

It was a dead body.

Daunte quickly looked at the injured children around him and looked back at the wrapped up body. It wasn't the first time he saw a dead body, but it was still unsettling for him. He knew that with all of the injured children to tend to, that proper disposal of the body was the least of Dr. Yulin's concerns. Particularly since he was still performing surgery on an injured child.

But Daunte was horrified to see the body in there with so many injured children. He closed his eyes and looked away. What a horrible fate for that poor child. Sentenced under some crazy law and worked tirelessly over a Decree that had been misinterpreted in their Scriptures. It was awful; truly awful.

"—really unbelievable!" Daunte stiffened as he heard someone speaking outside the infirmary. Their nonchalant tone made Daunte think they were a guard. "But the Clerics believe it, so here we are!"

"But just imagine!" another guard gushed. "A real True Rune! If Nagarea held the power of a True Rune, we could begin our pilgrimages again!"

Daunte's brow furrowed. _True Rune?_

"I'd like to wield it for myself," the first responded. Daunte flinched as the infirmary door slammed open. "To think that—HEY!" the same guard spotted Daunte and hurried over to him. "What do you think you're doing being out so late?!"

"I-I'm visiting my brother," Daunte told him, indicating Arin on the bed.

"Well, visiting hours are over!" the guard snapped. He grabbed Daunte by the arm and dragged him towards the door. "It's almost time for curfew!"

"Speaking of which, I need to report something to the Matron," the second guard said around a yawn.

"What do you need to report?" the first asked and Daunte couldn't help but feel dread. _Please please PLEASE not about the hole I found!_

"Oh, some of those traitors on the Third Tier were talking too much today," the second guard casually said. "I wanted to suggest to the Matron that maybe we ought to cut out some of their tongues in order to defer these heathens from talking during work."

Daunte saw red, and for a moment almost attacked the second guard. But the first guard said, "I wouldn't approach the Matron so soon after her arrival about what she should and shouldn't be doing here. That woman is pretty intimidating up close."

"…I guess you're right. And you're right, it's probably not a good idea to tell her how she should be doing her job." He shuddered. "Especially with _Sloan Faakhir_ of all people here."

"H-He's leaving tomorrow though," the first said. "And thank Nagar for that! Did you hear that he had one of his own subordinates scourged _fifty times_ for talking back to him? That man has a crazy short temper!"

"That's just a rumor! But…yeah. I don't want to risk crossing him." The second guard waved a hand. "I'm going to bed. Can you see to it that this heathen gets to where he needs to be?"

"I was going to do that anyway. Come on." the guard jabbed Daunte in the shoulder. "Hurry up and get out of here."

Daunte spared one final glance at Arin before allowing the guard to direct him towards the rooms for the children. _It's all right. Everything will be all right. I'll get out of here and I'll get Arin out of here. And I'll get Kass, Roen, and Felicity out of here too. Someday…someday this place will be destroyed and everyone who did this horrible things to us will pay for what they've done!_

"It must be nice to have the room all to yourself now," the guard said suddenly. He laughed shortly. "Seems rather convenient that your little brother got sick and the other heathen died within just a couple of days of each other, doesn't it?"

Daunte's heart skipped a beat, and his body grew cold. He quickly turned to face the guard, unable to catch his breath. _No…no, no, no!_

"Oh, didn't you hear?" the guard asked him casually. "There was an accident with the mining carts this afternoon. Your roommate Kass was crushed when his cart derailed. A fitting end for a blasphemous traitor like him."

Daunte couldn't muster a response. Tears quickly stung his eyes and he began hyperventilating. _No…not Kass! Not Kass! Kass can't be dead! I just spoke to him this morning! How can he just die?! It doesn't make any sense!_

But he remembered the dead body he saw wrapped up in the infirmary. He'd been terrified to approach it, but…but that body had been _Kass_?!

"Don't get used to having a room to yourself," the guard continued, completely indifferent to the emotional anguish Daunte was visibly going through. "There's never a shortage of you heathen children who need to be cleansed. Now get going." He shoved at Daunte again. "You're almost past curfew, and you know what happens to evil creatures like you who are out after curfew."

Daunte didn't know how he got back to his room. He didn't remember the trek, and he couldn't see through his tears. He didn't want to believe it—that Kass was dead and he was never going to see his closest friend again. But…but when he entered the room, he saw the beds. Daunte's cot was on the left side of the room, neatly made. Arin's was in the center of the room, just a little neater because the boy hadn't really slept in the bed the night before.

Then he saw Kass's bed. It had already been stripped bare of blankets and pillow, leaving just an empty rotted mattress. They didn't have much of anything to begin with, but that entire side of the room was empty. Anything that had indicated that Kass had slept there was gone.

Daunte didn't hear the door slam and lock behind him. His eyes didn't leave Kass's bed as he slowly walked over to his own. He didn't bother getting into his flimsy pajamas. He just sat down on the bed and pressed his back into the wall. He drew his knees up to his chin and hugged his legs to his chest. After a moment, he let the breath out he'd been holding, and a couple of teardrops rolled down his cheeks.

Kass had already been a Chasm resident when Daunte and Arin arrived three years prior. Kass had quickly become his friend and introduced him to Roen and Felicity, and had made Daunte's sentence a bit more bearable. The scope of his crime seemed almost laughable—this his mother and he had been homeless in the capital city of Mlkwt Alsmwat and she'd been caught stealing bread. Such a mundane crime, and yet his mother was executed and Kass himself was sentenced to the Dark Chasm. He went through all that pain and suffering and died a needless death.

 _He didn't deserve this. He never did anything wrong. Nagar, his_ _ **mom**_ _didn't do anything wrong! How could anybody blame them for stealing when they had no money and were homeless? How could it just end for him, after everything he's been through?!_

… _How can this happen to any of us?_

Daunte pressed his face into the tops of his knees, unable to muster the strength to sob. "Kass…"

* * *

Daunte skipped the morning meal the following day to check on Arin. His head ached from crying all night and for the lack of sleep, and he knew it was a bad idea to skip a meal after being denied dinner the previous night, but he shook it off and made himself alert. He had to do what was needed in order to keep himself alive. In order to keep _Arin_ alive.

But Arin was still very sick. The child's body still felt cold and his breathing was still erratic. He didn't seem aware of the fact that Daunte was there, and didn't respond when Daunte came to his side. All around Arin were the same injured children from the mining cart accident, and they were faring no better this morning than they had last night. They were crying out in pain, and asking for their mothers. It was heartbreaking, and Daunte struggled to keep calm. The dead body that had been tucked in the quarantine area was gone—Kass was gone. He didn't get a chance to say goodbye to his friend. And Daunte knew what they did with the dead bodies of the children. If they were lucky they were dumped in a mass grave. Otherwise they were ditched to the elements of the Rocky Plains, where they decomposed in the sun or were devoured by carrion predators.

He tried not to think about it as he sat at Arin's bedside, but it was difficult to keep his mind clear.

"Please hang in there," Daunte told the little boy, squeezing his small limp hand in comfort. "I'll get you out of here. I'll find a way to get us out of here. Just please don't give up. D…" he stopped himself before he finished, but the request still echoed in Daunte's mind.

 _Don't die on me._

"Is that damned kid still slacking off in here?"

Daunte stiffened. Guards were coming in to the sick ward. But why? Dr. Yulin wasn't there! Dr. Yulin was still performing surgeries on the injured!

 _That's probably why they're coming in. Dr. Yulin doesn't let them in while he's around._

Daunte dove underneath Arin's bed, not wanting to deal with those bastards so early. By their footsteps he could tell it was just two of them, but he still didn't want to deal with them.

"Look at these heathens! Struck down by Nagar's divine justice! They obviously are still too tainted, or else Nagar wouldn't have allowed this to happen to them!"

"M…Mama." Daunte heard one child sob. It was a girl, and she couldn't have been older than ten. "I want my mama…"

"Mama! Mama!" one guard mocked her in a falsetto voice. "Your mama's _dead_ , you little urchin! She can't save you from your punishment! Only Nagar can save you, but it's obvious that He shows you no favors!"

"Oh look, you've made her cry!" the other guard said. The little girl indeed started crying. "But you're calling for the wrong person! _Nagar_ is the only name you should be calling for! The fact that you don't understand this proves you still have evil in your heart!"

"I want my mama!" the girl cried, but then she gurgled in pain. "M-My arm…"

Daunte bit down so hard on his knuckles that he drew blood. He hated the guards and everyone who worked in the Dark Chasm, but it took every ounce of his willpower to not spring up from underneath the bed and murder these two monsters.

 _They won't get away with this. I swear they won't!_

"Oh, look who it is." The two had moved away from the girl and Daunte froze. They now stood at Arin's bedside. "The lazy heathen who refuses to get out of bed! Hey!" the hairs on the back of Daunte's neck stood on end as he felt the jolt of the bed from the guard poking at Arin with his baton. "Wake up! You need to get up and you need to work!"

The only reply Arin could muster was a weak wheeze. Daunte saw red and clenched his hands into fists. If they didn't go away…

"Hey," the guard said, his tone suddenly changing. "This kid really _does_ look sick. I thought his heathen brother was making excuses, but—"

" _Haaaauuck_!"

Daunte jerked violently as Arin had a violent coughing fit. Both guards jumped back reflexively. "Augh!" the same guard shouted in disgust. "W-What is that stuff coming out of his mouth?!"

"So they weren't lying," the other said. There was a long pause of silence before he continued. "Well, if his condition remains like this, then he can't work for his forgiveness. That means he's useless to us, and they'll probably kill him."

Daunte stilled. _Kill him?_

"I'll send the report to the Matron today that he's not getting any better," the first guard said. "A-Although I'll wait until _after_ the Sheikh leaves."

"The sooner the better," the other agreed. They began to move towards the door. "Doesn't that guy have any other expression besides glaring?"

"Oh, you don't want to know the things _I've_ heard—"

The door slammed shut behind them. Daunte frantically crawled out from underneath the bed and tended to Arin. The boy was still unconscious but he had coughed up more of that black substance from his lungs. Daunte found some gauze and cleaned up Arin's face and his pillow. His fingers were shaking so hard that he briefly lost his grip on the gauze. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly, and tried to make himself calm down. But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't stop the shaking.

"… _they'll probably kill him."_

Daunte shook his head and disposed of the gauze in a nearby trashcan. "That won't happen," he rasped. He leaned down and gave Arin a hug. "I won't let them kill you, Arin! I _won't_!"

He knew why he had kept that hole a secret. The room that the hole had revealed might possibly give them a way out of there.

* * *

Daunte met up with Roen and Felicity on the way to the Chapel for the Morning Prayer. Instinctively he looked for Kass as well before he had to remind himself that Kass was dead. It wasn't a pleasant reminder.

And judging by the expressions on Roen and Felicity's faces, Daunte knew that he didn't need to break the news to them. "You heard?"

Felicity nodded. Her eyes were bloodshot. "I haven't been able to stop crying since last night."

"This isn't fair," Roen hissed, clenching and unclenching his fists at his sides. "This shouldn't have happened to Kass! He worked so _hard_ for his forgiveness, only to end up like that…"

Felicity surged forward and hugged Daunte around the shoulders. Daunte awkwardly accepted the embrace as she cried into his shoulder. He felt like crying all over again but the fear inside his gut far outweighed his grief.

 _They might kill Arin. I need to get him out of here!_

"Hey!" the three of them flinched as a baton-wielding guard advanced upon them. "Hurry up and get inside the Chapel! It's the law to attend Morning Prayer every day!"

Daunte knew he had the choice to either hold his tongue or talk back to the guard. Ultimately he couldn't stop himself from saying, "Our friend is dead."

The guard didn't even stir. "What does _that_ matter?! Hurry up and get inside the Chapel!" he grabbed Felicity by her arm and wrenched her away from Daunte.

"It's not necessary to be so rough!" Roen chimed in, raising his hands slightly. "We're going in for the prayers! W-We just needed a momen—UN!" he yelped as the guard swatted him on the shoulder with the baton.

"Are you telling me what to do, heathen?!" he shouted, his dark eyes glaring dangerously.

Daunte felt that he could either openly challenge the guard or obey orders. He grabbed both Roen and Felicity's hands. "W-We're sorry, sir. We'll be on our way." He pulled his friends into the Chapel before the guard could strike them again.

All of the pews were filled, so the trio had to stand in the back. On the dais Daunte saw the Matron and he saw Sloan again, but on the side he saw other officers that he hadn't seen yesterday. They most likely served directly under Sloan. Their hoods had slight points to them, though not as pronounced as Sloan's points, and their faces weren't covered. One of the men had a unique look to him that caught Daunte's attention. The man looked older than Sloan but yet his rank was noticeably lower. His face was a bit gaunt and his hair was already white, as could be seen by his long goatee. He surveyed the assembly with a blank expression on his face, but there was something peculiar about his demeanor. Daunte couldn't quite put his finger on it.

"I realize so many of you are saddened by the mining car incident that occurred yesterday," the Matron said suddenly, drawing Daunte's attention to her. "But you all need to remember that you are doing Nagar's work. And remember that you are traitors and sinners working to get back into His graces. Even if you die here, know that you are doing so in the service of Him. And you must not stop until you have been awarded your forgiveness. Now hurry and pray! Pray for forgiveness for your sins!"

 _This is a farce. This is a complete farce!_ But Daunte did as he was told and knelt down. Today though he was able to conjure a prayer, and it wasn't for forgiveness.

 _Please, please let Kass rest in peace. He didn't deserve to die like that, but I hope his spirit is in peace. And please…please allow me to get Arin out of here before they kill him!_

They hustled out of the Chapel for the day's work. Felicity was back on the Upper Tier, and Roen had been assigned to Tier Three. Daunte knew that with Arin still incapacitated he would be given double the work for the day again, but since he hadn't been at the morning meal, he received his assignment for the day as he left the Chapel.

"…Tier Ten?" he asked softly.

"Do you have a problem with that?!" the guard snapped. "Or maybe you would rather push the mining carts today, like your dead heathen friend did?!"

Daunte quickly shook his head. "I-I'm fine." He met up with the other children working Tier Ten and followed them. But he couldn't stop the dread that filled his body.

Tier Ten…they were the ones who operated the pulley lifts.

* * *

Daunte could see from his position that it was going to be a sunny day. But the air felt thick and humid, even so early in the morning. He knew that it was a sign that there was going to be rainfall in the upcoming days, but he also knew that it meant the working conditions today would be unpleasant.

"All right, heathens!" the guard on Tier Ten snapped at them. "You're going to dig, and the heathens below will fill the platform with rocks! When I determine that it's sufficiently filled, then you'll raise the platform to Tier Five! Now hurry up and get to work!"

Directly below Tier Ten was the Lower Tier, where the fearful children reluctantly pushed the mining carts. Daunte spared a glance down at the Lower Tier and saw the damage to one of the rails from where the mining cart derailed. He thought he also saw blood on the pile of rocks along one wall, but he didn't want to think about it.

He also didn't want to think about the fact that he would have to lift the platform with the pulley. He ducked his head and began digging with his pick axe. Above him he heard the buzzing noise of the lift from the Upper Tier descending. He spared a glance over his shoulder and saw the Matron in the lift, along with Sloan and the bearded officer Daunte had seen in the Chapel. It appeared they were heading down to the Lower Tier, most likely to examine the damage from the mining cart.

"Heathen!" Daunte winced as a baton struck his left shoulder blade. "Why are you digging with your pick axe, huh?! Where's your shovel?!"

Daunte nursed his aching shoulder blade and looked at the other children. Everyone else around him _was_ using their shovels, and all of their heads were ducked so they wouldn't have to look at him. Daunte glanced back into his work bag. He knew where his shovel was. It was inside the hidden room on Tier Seven. But there was no way he could tell the guard that.

So instead he spoke a half-truth. "I don't know."

"You don't know?!" the guard bellowed out. He slammed his baton back into his waist band and drew out his whip. "What do you mean you don't know?!"

The whip struck Daunte on the arm twice before he grabbed it and held it steady. "I _don't know_ ," he repeated himself, allowing the anger inside of him to surface.

The guard paused, as though shocked by Daunte's defiance. After a moment, he yanked his whip loose from Daunte's grip. "All you heathens keep digging! Boy, you're going to lift the platform by yourself!"

Daunte's mouth hung open and he clicked it shut. By himself? He had to operate the pulley _by himself_? He looked down at his hands, covered by the gloves. There was no way he would be able to manage such a task.

"Well, hurry up!" the guard shoved him towards the waiting rope. "It's about half-full now, so you should have no problem lifting it up!"

Daunte stared at the guard. "S…Sir," he stammered. "I don't know if I—"

"Are you shirking your responsibilities?!" the guard cracked the whip against the small of Daunte's back. "You lazy, dirty heathen!"

"I c-can't!" Daunte pleaded. He held his hands up. "M-My grip isn't—"

The guard got toe-to-toe with him and snarled into his face, "If you don't lift that platform right now, your little brother will die. Do you want his blood on yours hands, heathen?!"

Daunte didn't need to be told twice. He hurried over and grasped the rope for the pulley. Below he could see that the platform was indeed half-full, but it was half-full of large rocks. The Matron was speaking to a guard in the Lower Tier, and gesturing to the damaged rail.

"Platform, coming up!" the guard shouted up to Tier Five. Daunte planted his feet and tried to angle his body in the proper position to be able to lift the platform without injuring himself. But his breathing was ragged from his rising panic.

 _If I don't do this, then he's going to kill Arin. But if I do this…_

He shook his head and began pulling on the rope. He surprised himself by managing to lift it up by several centimeters, but he felt the immediate strain in his arms from the weight. It was very heavy, surely weighing as much as two people. But he tried not to think about it as he continued pulling the rope.

"Faster, faster!" the guard snapped at him. "We need that platform up at Tier Five _now_!"

Daunte kept his focus on the platform in front of him, watching it rise into view. He watched it rise higher and higher, past Tier Ten to Tier Nine. Past Tier Nine to Tier Eight. To Tier Seven. To Tier Six—

Daunte felt the trembling in his fingers and he quickly looked at his fingers in horror. _Oh no…NO!_

He lost his grip on the rope.

Daunte hollered as the platform rapidly fell back towards the Lower Tier. More shrieks rose from the guards and from the children as the platform fell past Tiers Seven and Eight. Daunte tried to get his grip on the rope again, but the rope kept sliding through his gloved palms. He felt the immediate burn of the rope but that didn't matter to him. He tried to focus his grip to stop the platform before it crushed the people below.

But right before his eyes, the platform flew past him at unending speed.

"LOOK OUT!" someone yelled.

Daunte heard the shrieks below and the frantic sound of scrambling. The end of the rope slipped through his hands and the whiplash caused him to fly backwards. He landed flat on his back and the ominous "CRASH" filled the air. He saw stars, but he knew that was the least of his worries.

The ropes had eaten right through Daunte's flimsy gloves and had burned his palms, but Daunte wasn't thinking about that. He was trembling from head to toe, unable to keep his breathing even as he crawled over to the edge and fearfully looked over the side. The guard didn't yell at him or discipline him. The man was pale-faced and looking over the edge as well. Below them, the platform was broken into many splintered pieces. Even a few of the rocks that had been lifted had shattered upon impact.

Thankfully, nobody appeared to be injured from the platform's collapse. Not the guards and not the children. Sloan Faakhir and the older gentleman serving as his second-in-command helped the Matron to her feet. The Matron also looked uninjured and she surprisingly looked unfazed. She brushed out her white ropes as though nothing was out of the ordinary.

But then she raised her eyes and looked straight up at them. "Who's responsible for this?"

" _He is_!" Daunte was grabbed by his collar and dragged by the guard. They walked the length of Tier Ten, the children adverting their eyes and the other guards glared. They walked until they reached the Lower Tier, and the guard threw Daunte to the dirt in front of the Matron. Daunte felt his shins scrape from the rocks, but he barely noticed the pain. "This boy is responsible!"

"What exactly happened?" the Matron said. Despite having to jump out of the way of a falling platform, her hood was still securely in place. Daunte could still see nothing of her face besides her blue, and they regarded him coldly.

"This lazy heathen is nothing but trouble!" the guard snapped, shoving at Daunte roughly. "He didn't have the correct tools for today, so I told him to raise the platform! And since you were down here, Lady Matron, it's far too obvious he did this on purpose!"

"I-I didn't!" Daunte pleaded. He looked at the Matron, and he looked at Sloan, but he was frightened by the giant man's glare and focused back on the Matron. "It was an accident! I swear it was an accident!"

The Matron regarded him with her unfeeling gaze for a long moment of silence. Then she suddenly looked at the guard. "You had this one boy raise a platform _by himself_?"

The guard stiffened behind Daunte. "I…uh…"

"Are you an idiot?" the Matron demanded sardonically. "What made you think such a thing was a good idea? I'm amazed he was able to raise the platform so high by himself! But why would you think I would sanction such a risky punishment for one boy?"

"L-Lady Matron," the guard sputtered. He bowed deeply. "F-Forgive me…"

"Seize him," the Matron announced.

The guard cried out as his associates nonchalantly grabbed his arms. "L-Lady Matron!"

"It's far too obvious that you're not qualified for your current position of authority," the Matron told him. "It's bad enough that I have to deal with the inconvenience of a derailing mine cart on my very first day of work. Now on my second day my own life is suddenly at risk? I have no need for idiots like you serving under me. You are dismissed, soldier."

The guard's face turned even paler. "D…Dismissed?! But I—"

"You have precisely one hour to remove yourself from the Chasm. If you don't, I will have you arrested and sent to the capital. Do I make myself clear?"

"I—"

" _Do I make myself clear?_ " her tone sent chills down Daunte's spine.

"Y…Yes, Lady Matron." The guard ducked his head.

"Get this idiot out of my sight," the Matron said, waving a dismissive hand. "It's positively amazing that I actually have to tell something that it's a bad idea to have one lone child lift such a large platform all by himself. I would think that such a thing would be _obvious_."

The dismissed guard was pulled away from the Lower Tier by his associates. Daunte watched him until he disappeared from sight, surprised by what had just occurred. _She…she knew it wasn't my fault?_

A shadow fell over him. "Now, as for you."

Daunte flinched and looked up at the Matron again. "You may have been following an idiotic order, but there is no changing the fact that you nearly dropped a platform on me."

"I-I didn't mean it," Daunte pleaded. He started pulling his gloves off to show the Matron his hands when she continued. "Your brother is in the infirmary, correct? Don't you care about what may happen to him? You weren't properly prepared today and you almost kill me. _Me_. Do you not understand the scope of your situation, boy?"

"I do!" Daunte insisted. He bowed his head. "I do, I understand. Please forgive me! Please…" _Please don't kill my brother,_ he added silently.

"Saying that you're sorry isn't enough," the Matron told him coldly. "You'll need to be punished, boy. And you know what the punishment for such mistakes are, don't you?"

A hard lump formed in Daunte's throat. He knew. Any act of violence against a guard, whether intentional or now, resulted in twenty lashes from a bullwhip. But this was a Matron and even a _Sheikh_ , so he knew his punishment would be far worse than that. He slowly rose to his feet, resigned to his fate. "I-I understand, Lady Matron."

"Lady Matron, allow me."

Daunte stiffened as the Sheikh stepped forward. It was the first time Daunte heard his voice. It was a guttural, almost inhuman sound void of emotions. Seeing Sloan's hated filled eyes lock with Daunte's eyes filled him with dread. He opened his mouth to plead for mercy, but no sound came out.

"Do as you will, Sloan," the Matron said neutrally, stepping aside.

Sloan suddenly advanced on Daunte. The boy took only one step back before Sloan's giant fist connected with his left cheek. He saw stars again and went flying. He flew backwards by about two meters before he hit the dirt, sliding across the rocky ground. Blood filled his nose and mouth and trickled out of both orifices. He even felt the upper teeth on his left side come loose as Sloan advanced on him again. His footprints sounded heavily upon the ground, rattling in Daunte's ears.

Sloan grabbed him by his collar and lifted him up. Daunte blinked through the haze in his vision and saw Sloan draw his fist back for another blow. Maybe—maybe the first blow had given him a concussion. It was strange. Daunte could've sworn he saw a brief glow of white light emulating from Sloan's fist.

Then that fist struck Daunte in the temple, and his world went dark.

* * *

Daunte felt pain reverberating throughout his body as he regained consciousness. He didn't remember what had happened after Sloan's first two punches, but judging by the pain he was feeling Sloan hadn't stopped with those two punches. He groaned quietly, and opened his eyes. His vision rattled violently and he felt nauseas. He squeezed his eyes shut and tried to will himself to not throw up.

A shadow fell over his body, and a hand touched his shoulder gently. "Lie still. Don't make any unnecessary movements."

Daunte's nerves calmed considerably with this voice. He opened his eyes slower this time and blinked to adjust to the light of the infirmary. Dr. Yulin was leaning over him, his golden eyes warm and reassuring. The light reflected off his bald head, but not in a blinding way, and his black eyebrows were knitted. The man always wore an expression of deep stress, and even as he looked at Daunte comfortingly Daunte saw a subtle sadness behind his eyes.

Dr. Yulin may have been an employee of the Dark Chasm, but he was probably the only employee who genuinely cared about the children there. Daunte felt safe when he was around the doctor, even though the man virtually had no power in the Chasm.

"You were beaten savagely by the Sheikh," Dr. Yulin told Daunte softly. He pulled away and turned to a side table. "There was madness in the man's demeanor, and his strength was unnatural."

Daunte closed his eyes, not wanting to remember the terror he'd felt, and found his voice. "I-I thought he would…kill me."

"I do not wish to scare you, but the Sheikh did indeed not let up on you even after you lost consciousness," Dr. Yulin said. He held a bottle in his hands and poured the contents into a cup. "He only stopped when his second-in-command intervened."

Daunte vaguely remembered the older gentlemen who had been with Sloan and the Matron and he slowly opened his eyes again. "H-He saved me?"

"In a way," Dr. Yulin said. "The second-in-command—Adalgiso, I believe his name was—stepped forward and reminded the Sheikh that they needed to depart this place and complete an assignment given to them by the High Clerics. So the Sheikh and his group departed soon after, and they brought you to me."

Daunte felt relief wash over his body. So Sloan really was gone, and he wouldn't finish Daunte off. But that still left the Matron. "Doctor."

"Yes?"

"The Matron. She…will I still be punished for the accident? And Arin…will he—"

"I overheard the Matron say that the beating you received from the Sheikh was "punishment enough"," Dr. Yulin told him. "However, I cannot predict if she will change her mind at a later time. But she recognizes that you weren't entirely at fault and you shouldn't have been lifting a platform by yourself when your hands are in such a condition. But don't worry about that now. Just lie still and relax."

Daunte stared at the ceiling. "Doctor, y-you volunteered to work here didn't you?"

"Yes, I did." Dr. Yulin placed his hand behind Daunte's head and helped him to sit up slightly. "I'd heard stories about the deplorable living conditions here, so I volunteered my services to give as much help to you children as I could. However, the conditions here were _far_ worse than I ever imagined. Here." He held the cup to Daunte's mouth. "Drink this."

Daunte drank the potion. Within seconds the pain in his body alleviated somewhat and didn't feel so sore anymore. But he could tell he wasn't fully healed, but he knew that wasn't Dr. Yulin's fault and more to do with the fact that the doctor had limited supplies. "T…Thank you."

"You don't need to thank me, Daunte." He turned back to his table. "I'm just doing my job as a doctor."

Daunte noticed for the first time that the infirmary was less occupied than it had been that morning. Only four children remained from the mining cart accident, and he saw that he was beside Arin's bed. "A-Are the other children all right?"

"I did what I could to fix them up. Unfortunately it's not enough to completely heal them. I really wish I had my Water Rune, but they removed it from me before I started my work here." He shook his head sadly. "It would certainly come in handy at this moment."

Hearing the word 'rune' reminded Daunte of what he had heard yesterday. "Doctor?"

"What is it, Daunte?"

"What's a True Rune?"

Dr. Yulin paused, and looked over his shoulder at Daunte. "I'm sorry?"

"A True Rune," Daunte said. "I-I know what runes are, but what's a True Rune?"

Dr. Yulin slowly turned back around to face him. "Where did you hear about the True Rune?"

"I overheard some of the guards talking about it last night."

"…I see," Dr. Yulin said at length. He rubbed a hand over his. "This…what I'm going to tell will probably upset you, but—"

"Please tell me. I want to know."

Dr. Yulin folded his hands in his lap. He had a look of distress on his face. "A True Rune is very different from a standard rune. True Runes, simply put, are woven into the fabric of our world. They're an entity beyond magic or the supernatural. They are sentient and they possess a power unparalleled to anything in the world. Anyone who possesses a True Rune will yield that power and become greater than a human being—immortal and impervious to disease. I-I have heard that True Rune users are still capable of dying, but I have never seen a True Rune myself. Everything that I know I've only heard second-hand." He shrugged. "I've heard that only 27 True Runes exist in the entire world, so it's not likely I'll ever see one."

Daunte was amazed by the story. He could barely fathom that such items existed, but he remembered the enthusiasm in the soldiers and it made him more curious. "D…Do the soldiers hear want to find a True Rune?"

"They believe they're going to find one here, in the Dark Chasm."

Daunte stilled. A cold feeling formed in the pit of his stomach and he stared at Dr. Yulin. "W…Wha…"

"A few years ago, the High Clerics at the Grand Citadel found an ancient tablet, written in the forgotten Sindarian language." Dr. Yulin's tone had lowered and softened. "They managed to find a translator for the tablet, and…" he shook his head. "I never saw the tablet. But rumors from the capital indicated that the tablet gave the coordinates for a buried True Rune. This mine coincidentally was right on top of those coordinates."

A hard lump formed in Daunte's throat. What Dr. Yulin seemed to imply was horrible, and Daunte didn't want to think it was true. He swallowed thickly and forced his voice to work. "I-I…but I though the mine—they reopened it for a children's prison. To f-force us to do manual labor to earn forgiveness from Nagar. Right?"

The sorrow in Dr. Yulin's face was unbearable, and Daunte had to look away. But he couldn't escape the doctor's voice. "I'm sorry, Daunte. I'm truly, truly sorry. This should've never happened to you children. The sad truth of it is that…the High Clerics aren't interested in your penance. All they want is the True Rune—which, for all we know, might not even be here. But so long as the True Rune remains missing, they work all of you children to death until they find it."

It was horrible, so much worse than he ever expected. He opened his eyes, unable to stop the tear drops from leaking out, and looked towards Arin's bed. His little brother still looked so pale, and his breathing was so shallow.

"So…this is why we have to go through all this?" he said darkly, his eyes still on Arin. "Arin's sick, Kass died, and so many others—" he turned back around to face Dr. Yulin, though the sudden motion caused his vision to blur. "All because of a _Rune_?! They're starving us and killing us, and it's all for some stupid Rune that might not even be here?!"

"Daunte, keep your voice down," Dr. Yulin implored. "If the guards hear you—"

"Why us?!" Daunte demanded. "Why are they using us to find the Rune?! Why don't they come down here themselves and dig for the damn thing?! Why use children for this?!"

"Daunte, please calm down." Dr. Yulin put his hands on Daunte's shoulders and eased him back down. "Shh, don't carry on like this. You'll exhaust yourself and you won't have any energy for your recovery."

Daunte's chest was heaving with his sharp breaths. He closed his eyes. "Why did they do this to us?"

"Because the Theocracy wants to possess the power of the True Rune," Dr. Yulin said. "However, a True Rune cannot simply be affixed to an arm or forehead. From what I've heard, True Runes _choose_ the person who will possess them. The High Clerics ultimately want to lessen the chances of the True Rune choosing someone they don't want it to choose, and that's why they have children like you looking for the Rune. They believe that a True Rune wouldn't ever choose a child, and for this reason they are using child labor here."

It was overwhelming for Daunte. The last three years he'd worked himself to the bone, not because he wanted penance but because he just wanted to get out of the Dark Chasm with Arin. But this…this new information was _monstrous_. It wasn't out of some warped, misguided theology that they were all being worked to death. No, the Theocracy was using them to go on a wild goose chase for something that might not even be there.

 _And since all they care about is finding this damn True Rune, and_ _ **not**_ _our penance…I'm never going to get out of here, am I? None of us are._

Daunte stiffened. It was at that moment he remembered the find he'd made just yesterday. The hollow dark hole leading into a room of sorts. He'd barely seen the walls of the room, but they'd glistened…blue-purple. It didn't look like any of the rooms in the Dark Chasm.

 _Does that room lead to the True Rune?!_

Daunte looked at Dr. Yulin. "Doctor…you said that the True Rune keeps a person healthy, right?"

"In a way, yes," Dr. Yulin said. "So long as the user holds a True Rune they can't get sick or even age. But they can still die."

"Okay." Daunte quickly sat up, though the motion made him dizzy.

"Daunte, what are you doing?" Dr. Yulin grabbed his shoulders. "I may have given you a healing potion, but you still need to rest!"

"I need to work," Daunte told him. "If I don't work, they're going to kill Arin. I-I'll be all right, Doctor. This isn't the first time I've been beaten up."

Dr. Yulin slowly shook his head. "Daunte, I won't let them kill Arin. I'll shield the boy with my own body if I must. But I cannot approve of you returning to work so quickly after such a brutal beating. I'll speak with the Matron, so—"

Daunte grabbed the doctor by his wrists and raised his hands from his shoulders. "Doctor. Thank you for taking care of me and for taking care of Arin. But I _must_ do this. My concern first and foremost is to keep Arin alive. In order to do that, I have to duck my head and work. But I'll get us out of this. I just need to go to work."

Dr. Yulin sighed, and gently pulled his hands free. "You're such a strong boy, Daunte. I don't know if you realize this, but you've inspired a lot of children around here."

"W-What?" Daunte said, gaping at him. "Inspired? _Me_?"

"They look up to you and have tried to emulate you. Your love and care for your brother hasn't gone unnoticed, Daunte. The guards use it against you, but after I discharged the children this morning many talked about you. They remembered you coming in here last night and this morning to talk to Arin and comfort him. Even though they didn't receive your comfort, they were reassured by the comfort you gave to your brother. Your personality and these small gestures you have made have given the children a lot of comfort and hope themselves."

It felt surreal that many children suffering in the Chasm saw him as an inspiration. Daunte certainly never went out of his way to inspire anyone except for Arin. But maybe…maybe the children saw the care he gave Arin and that fulfilled something inside of them that they needed? It seemed so strange.

"If you insist on returning to work, I won't stop you," Dr. Yulin said. "But _please_ be careful. I doubt they will assign you to lift any more platforms, but still be careful."

"I will, Doctor." Daunte's legs felt unsteady, but he carefully walked around his bed to Arin's bed. He leaned down and kissed his brother on the forehead. "Don't worry," he whispered to the sleeping child. "I'm going to get you something that will make you healthy again."

Arin didn't respond to his words, but saying them out loud was helpful enough to Daunte. He knew what he needed to do now.

 _If there's the possibility of a True Rune here, I need to find it first. Hopefully I'm still the only one who knows where that room is._

* * *

It was painful for Daunte to not visit Arin the following morning, but he knew how important it was that he tell Roen and Felicity what he had learned last night. He was still bruised and sore from yesterday, but he didn't hurt nearly as badly as before. As Daunte entered the dining hall, he was surprised to find himself face-to-face with over a dozen children grabbing at his arms and waist.

"Are you all right?"

"The scary man beat you unconscious!"

"I thought you had died!"

"Did you see Arin? You saw Arin, didn't you?"

Daunte couldn't help but gape at them. He remembered Dr. Yulin's words from last night, but even knowing what he had said didn't prepare him for this. With all the horrible stuff that constantly went on around then, Daunte was moved that the children really did look up to him.

But he also felt guilty because he didn't feel like he did anything to warrant such inspiration.

"Stop chatting, heathens!" a guard shouted, whip ready in hand. "Hurry up and eat!" he took a quick rap at Daunte and struck him on the arm. Daunte was stunned by the completely unnecessary blow, and he wondered if the guards were angry at him for their brethren's dismissal yesterday.

During the morning meal the trio huddled close together and Daunte spoke in a soft tone so no one else could hear them.

When Daunte finished, Felicity's eyes were glistening. "I-I'm going to be sick," she said quietly. She covered her mouth. "I-I…"

"So…we're not here for our penance," Roen said softly. He looked down at his hands. "We're only here because the High Clerics want the True Rune…"

"That's what Dr. Yulin said," Daunte said bitterly. "They're not interested in us atoning for some _sin_. They're going to work us to death to find that damned Rune."

Felicity dropped her hand away from her mouth and shook her. "I…I'm so angry that I can feel the energy sucking right out of me. What has been the point of all this?"

"But Daunte," Roen hissed, leaning across the table. "Y-You said you found a room, right? Do you think the True Rune is in there?"

Daunte nodded. "I'm hoping it is."

"T-Then we can give it to the Matron!" Excitement filled Roen's face. "If she has the True Rune, then there's no point in keeping the Dark Chasm open, right? S-So if you tell her about the room you found, we can all be out of here by nightfall!"

Daunte wasn't so hopeful about that, but Felicity chimed in before he could. "If we tell the Matron about the room, what's to stop her from going in there and taking all the credit for herself?"

"I don't think she would do that," Roen said.

"Why not?" Felicity's tone turned sharper. "Our being here is already under false pretenses! Who else besides us knows that we're really here to find a True Rune? As far as the other children and even the rest of the country is concerned, we're working off our _sin_! So what difference would it make for them to find the True Rune? Why stop the manual labor if it's forcing the rest of the country into compliance?!"

"Felicity, I don't believe that will happen. Daunte." Roen looked at him. " _Are_ you going to tell the Matron about this?"

"No," Daunte said. "I want to find that True Rune before anyone else does."

"But what can we do with it?" Felicity asked. "There's no rune master here at the Dark Chasm to attach it to your arm!"

"I don't think Daunte wants the True Rune," Roen said. He leaned across the table. "You want to give it to _Arin_ , don't you?"

"Arin?!" Felicity looked at Daunte. "You're going to attach the True Rune to Arin?!"

Daunte didn't respond. The horn sounded for the end of the morning meal. Daunte quickly ate his stale bread, and his stomach twisted slightly from the lack of food he'd been having for the last couple days, and stood up. "I've been assigned to Tier Seven again. I'm going to wait until tonight to find the Rune."

It was a very simple plan. It was just one room after all. The guards didn't supervise him fully when he worked double, so all he needed to do was ask for a lantern and enter the room. If the True Rune was in there, he would grab it and bring it to Arin. Even if the Clerics thought that a True Rune wouldn't choose a child, Daunte felt it was worth the risk.

 _I'll get the True Rune and give it to Arin. That should make him healthy again, and then we can finally get out of here._

The thought alone caused a rare smile to rise to Daunte's mouth.

* * *

Unsurprisingly, Daunte was the primary focus of the guards that day. To his shock his hole really _was_ undisturbed, and nobody had seemed to notice the crate in front of it. He worked in the same general area though, ducking his head and digging while the guards randomly struck at him with their batons and whips. He was yelled at for working too slow, working too fast, for having a missing shovel—there was never a shortage of excuses for them to strike him.

But Daunte didn't pay attention. He just kept working and ignored the blows and the taunts. He focused his mind on the task that he would undergo that very night.

 _Just a few more hours. Just a few more hours._

Finally, the shout came to end the work day. The other children collected their tools and left and Daunte approached a guard. "Excuse m—"

"Get back to work!" the guard shouted, shoving at him.

"I-I understand," Daunte said, bowing his head. "I was just wondering if I could have a lantern back there tonight."

"A lantern?!" the guard snarled. "You have torches back there!"

"I-I understand. B-But I thought it would be easier if I used a lantern instead. Lanterns are easier to dispose of than torches, right?"

The guard scoffed, but he grabbed a lantern off a nearby hook. "Here it is, now get back to work!" he threw it to the ground in front of Daunte. One of the windows broke on one side, but the flame somehow remained lit. "And you better believe you'll be answering for breaking it!" the guard added.

Daunte didn't argue. He grabbed it off the ground and ran back into the tunnel. He set the lantern aside and pushed the crate aside. He looked down the tunnel and saw the guard's shadow was very close by, so he began digging again in a random section of the wall. He was so tired by this point, but he knew this would probably be his last chance. He had to find that True Rune before anybody else did!

He watched the tunnel carefully to make sure the guard wasn't paying attention. The shadow had disappeared off the wall. Then he turned his attention to the hole and began picking at the sides of it. Little by little it grew larger but he didn't want to make it _too_ big. Just large enough so that he could slide on through and get inside.

 _I'll find that True Rune. Just wait Arin, I'll find that Rune!_

It was then that Daunte swung at the area around the hole again. Only this time the pick axe missed the wall and instead went straight inside the hole. The momentum pulled Daunte in and before he could scream he plunged into darkness.

* * *

TBC. Feel free to vote in the poll!


	2. Chapter One: Part Two

Part Two

"…te! Daunte!"

Daunte slowly opened his eyes and found himself surrounded by darkness. After a moment he remembered what had happened—that he'd tumbled into the hidden room—and quickly sat up. His vision spun slightly, but he checked himself over for injuries. His right wrist ached and he felt a large lump on the side of his head, but he felt no broken bones and he saw no blood.

 _I'm all right._ He breathed out a sigh of relief.

"Daunte!" the shout came again. "Thank Nagar you're all right!"

Daunte looked above him. He saw a hole in the wall high above him. It looked to be about 3 meters above his head, so he was certain he wouldn't be able to reach the hole without help.

Luckily for him, he saw help in the two relieved faces at the mouth of the hole. "Is this it?" Felicity asked him. "Is this what you were talking about, Daunte?"

"Hang on, we'll throw you down some rope!" Roen added. He briefly disappeared out of sight.

"H…" Daunte cleared his throat slightly. "What are you two doing here? Isn't it almost time for curfew?"

"We overhead one of the guard's say that they were going to work you all night as punishment for what happened yesterday," Felicity said grimly. "Roen and I volunteered to assist in your punishment, and so here we are."

Daunte was moved that his two friends would stick their necks out for him like this, but he was still concerned. "D-Did my fall get anyone's attention?"

To his relief, Felicity shook her head. "The guard on this Tier decided to leave and play some sort of dice game with the other guards. The only guards on duty in the general area are on the Upper Tier. So we should be okay to explore this room and find the True Rune."

"It's unbelievable," Roen said, coming back into view. "Gambling is against the law, and yet the guards are gambling in a prison camp."

"There's many things about this place that is breaking the law," Felicity muttered bitterly.

"In any case, here!" Roen tossed a shaggy rope through the hole. It hit the stone floor of the room with a slight 'thump'. "Give us a second, we'll be right down!"

"Did you see the True Rune yet?" Felicity asked.

Daunte shook his head. "I just woke up after my fall."

"Well, we'll find it in no time!" Felicity started down the rope first, holding the broken lantern Daunte had left up there earlier. The light quickly filled the chamber and Daunte was able to see his surroundings.

And Daunte saw that he was surrounded by glistening brick walls of blue-purple...but an otherwise empty room.

 _Oh no. Don't tell me I was mistaken!_

As Felicity reached the floor, Daunte then saw a quick shadow across the wall. He turned around and breathed out a sigh of relief as he saw an open corridor in front of him. So there was more than this mysterious room down here.

"Daunte, _look out_!" Felicity suddenly shouted.

The shadow resurfaced and a large object flew at Daunte. He darted out of the way and caught sight of both his pick axe and his shovel. He quickly grabbed the pick axe as Felicity shrieked again. He heard scratching noises across the floor and spun around. He saw the red eyes first before large claws swung at him. Daunte jumped out of the way, but he couldn't avoid those claws raking across his arm. They tore through the sleeve and came very close to breaking his skin, but he was able to dodge that blow. He felt the pick axe slipping through his fingers, but he squeezed his palms around it as he surveyed his assailant.

It was a brown rat. A very _large_ rat, easily the size of a full-grown sheep. It was blinking its red eyes rapidly and sizing Daunte up.

"Roen, throw down my tools!" Felicity shouted up at the hole. "We've encountered a monster!"

The rat quickly turned towards Felicity, and Daunte took his chance. He swung the pick axe and struck the rat down with a single blow, but he couldn't maintain his grip and the pick axe remained buried inside the rat's body as it dropped dead to the floor.

There were two quick 'thumps' as Roen tossed down his bad and Felicity's bag, and Roen himself quickly climbed down the rope. "What is it? Are you both all right?!"

"It was a giant rat," Felicity said as Daunte struggled to pull his pick axe out of the rat in question. "I-It attacked us. It probably won't be the last one."

"T-There are monsters in such close proximity to us?!" Roen exclaimed, aghast. He shuddered violently. "That's crazy! What if they come clawing through the walls at us?!"

"Calm down, I don't think that they've been stuck down here all this time," Felicity said. She dug through her workbag and pulled out her pick axe. "There must be some kind of exit they've been going in and out of."

An exit! That thought alone elevated Daunte's already heightened mood. "It would be incredible if we found an exit. But I want to look for the True Rune first and foremost."

"We'll need to be on our guard." Felicity sighed as she looked down at her tool. "I wished I had some rocks or knives. My father taught me some throwing techniques and I feel more comfortable with long-distance tactics."

"Well, I-I only know some freestyle techniques," Roen said. He looked between his pick axe and his shovel and ultimately chose his shovel. "But I've only ever practiced with a bolo knife. Daunte, did your parents teach you any techniques?"

Daunte shrugged stiffly. "I remember my father always used a large weapon, but I can't remember what it was. It was too big to be a sword, but it was smaller than a pole weapon. I think he taught me some techniques, but…" he held up his free hand and flexed his fingers. "They won't do me any good now."

"Well, we're already down here," Roen said. He looked down the dark corridor with trepidation. "We might as well have a look around, right? I don't see anything like a True Rune in here."

"Nothing but writing on the walls," Felicity said, holding up the lantern. Etched into the blue-purple bricks close to the ceiling looked like cursive letters, but Daunte didn't recognize the language.

"All right," Daunte said, looking at them. "Let's stay close together. We have some items from our bags, so if we come to a crossroads or have different turns, let's leave items on the floor so that we know the way back."

"Good idea," Roen said. He sighed as he hoisted his workbag over his shoulder. "I can't believe this remained undiscovered for so long."

"If they'd left this mine open, then it would've been discovered eventually," Felicity said. "And then none of us would even be here."

 _Not for much longer._ Daunte gingerly held his pick axe as the trio crept towards the open corridor.

* * *

As exciting as it was to be exploring this hidden tomb—Daunte didn't exactly know _what_ this place was—he couldn't help but feel a little claustrophobic down there. Even with the lantern to give them light, they could barely see a meter in front of them. They came to certain twists and turns, but the corridors seemed endless. Every so often they found a room, and in the room there was a treasure chest or two. But the chests were old and the locks on them were rusted, and so they ended up smashing the boxes to pieces when they found them. Mostly they found healing herbs, but Daunte also found some sort of scroll in one treasure chest. He unrolled it but couldn't read the handwriting with their dim light. But he saw illustrations on the scroll that portrayed very vibrant bursts of fire in elaborate shapes. _This might be useful to me._ He tucked the scroll into his workbag.

But for the most part the treasure chest only had healing items, which they had initially decided to give to Dr. Yulin when they got out.

However, the monsters inhabiting this secret place made this impossible. They ran into more large rats, but they also ran into rather large _bats_ , and barely escaped them without being poisoned. Even more baffling were the ant armies they encountered. Full units of three to four fully armored and armed ants, charging them like a battalion. It would've been laughable if these same ants didn't pack quite a punch…and had better weapons than they did.

But they were still small creatures and were defeated quickly, even though they were forced to use their healing herbs to heal their wounds.

"I'm going to take these," Felicity said after one battle. She gathered up the small spears the soldier ants had dropped. "They might be more useful to me for throwing."

"Felicity, please give me the lantern," Daunte said, shoving his pick axe into his workbag. "I'm going to try fighting with my fists from now on."

"Daunte, you want to go _unarmed_?!" Roen exclaimed. His shout echoed down the corridor and they heard an ominous rumble in reply. "Is that a good idea?!" he asked more quietly.

"In almost every fight we've been in I've not been able to hang onto my axe." Daunte looked at him grimly. "I can't keep a grip on it. If I have to keep wasting my time running after it after each swing I'm going to get myself killed. At least with my fists I know that my hands won't go flying off my arms."

"…Daunte," Felicity said quietly. She had a look of sorrow on your face. "The platform yesterday. We all know that you didn't do it on purpose. But your hands…did they—"

"There's no way Daunte would've been able to lift that platform all by himself anyway," Roen interjected. He looked at his friend. "I don't think this is a good idea, but we've got your back Daunte."

Daunte nodded and held out his hand for the lantern. "Thank you."

The lantern's loop wasn't as thick as the handle of his axe, so Daunte didn't have as much trouble carrying it. They didn't run into as many monsters as they continued on, and Daunte found the combat to be much easier with his fists. But his knuckles rapidly became bruised, and he ultimately wasn't able to finish off a single monster by himself. Felicity however fared much better at throwing the soldier ants' spears at enemies than using the pick axe, and Roen wielded the shovel fairly well too. They didn't know how long they were down there, but they didn't stop looking. They _couldn't_ stop looking.

Finally though…they rounded a corner and came to a dead end.

"We made the wrong turn!" Felicity said with dismay. She quickly turned around. "Quick, we need to get out of this dead end before we're cornered!"

But Daunte was suspicious about the dead end. For one thing, it wasn't like they came smack into a wall. He held the lantern up and examined the walls closely. The walls of the corridor seemed to…look different than this wall in front of them. It almost looked like the walls on either side of them continued past the wall in front.

He held the lantern up higher, and that was when he saw the same unknown language they'd seen all over the walls.

"Daunte?" Roen said, tugging on his arm. "We have to turn back before we're cornered!"

Daunte heard the patter of footsteps further down the way they came. It did sound like they were being approached. Maybe the wall in front of him really _was_ a dead end, but…

"Let me try something," he said aloud. With his free hand he tapped the blue-purple brick in front of him. Nothing happened. Frowning, he tapped several other bricks in the wall. It remained undisturbed.

"Daunte!" Roen snapped. Felicity and him drew their weapons as the footsteps grew closer.

Daunte tapped one more brick in the wall, and jumped back as the brick suddenly sank deep into the wall. The wall suddenly shook, and dust filled the air as it sank into the floor with a violent rumble. Roen and Felicity shouted with alarm, and gaped as the passage open in front of them, revealing a large room.

A large room with a bright light coming from the center.

In the corridor behind them, it was silent. They no longer heard any footsteps approaching. _This noise most likely scared whatever was advancing on us,_ Daunte decided.

"Whoa…" Roen breathed. He was the first to step into the room. The room was so bright, such a contrast from the rest of the place. Daunte and Felicity followed Roen in, gaping at their surroundings. There was more handwriting high on the walls of the room, and the room itself seemed empty. But in the very center of the room was a dais that was as high as Daunte's chest. Despite being surprised at their discovery, they couldn't help by gravitate towards the light in the center of the room.

The trio stood on either side of the small dais, transfixed on the glow in the center. Daunte swallowed thickly as gazed upon it. Within the golden-green glow, he thought he saw a golden-green symbol. A half-circle around a single vertical line, like a halo. Above the halo was two dots. The symbol blinked in time with the glow surrounding it, almost like a heartbeat.

"…Is this it?" Felicity asked quietly. "Is this the True Rune they've been looking for?"

"I wonder what sort of power it has," Roen said to himself. He looked at Daunte. "A-Are you sure you don't want to take this to the Matron? S-She really might let all of us go if we give this to her!"

"I don't trust her to do that," Felicity said.

Daunte almost reached for the True Rune, but he held his hand back. "I…I don't know how I'm supposed to grab hold of this. It almost seems shapeless, doesn't it?"

"But you want to give it to Arin to cure his sickness, right?" Felicity said. "S-So you'll need to somehow grab it in order to get it out of here."

"I-If you insist on giving it to Arin, we'll definitely need to carry it out of here," Roen said. He looked over his shoulder. "There's no way we can bring Arin down here. It's too dangerous."

Daunte gathered up his nerve and used his hands to surround the True Rune. They trembled in the light. "I-I…" he suddenly withdrew his hands and turned to his friends. "Guys. I agree that it's too dangerous, but…" he shook his head. "We might have no choice _but_ to bring Arin down here. I don't know how I'm supposed to pick this up without it accidentally attaching to me."

"Daunte, this place is full of monsters!" Felicity told him harshly. "Not to mention the air quality down here is very poor! Arin's health might worsen if we bring him down here!"

"But if the True Rune chooses him," Daunte said. "Then his condition will immediately clear. I-I certainly don't want to risk his health and safety, but I don't think I have any other choice! I know I'm being selfish, but I don't want to lose my little brother! If I don't get this True Rune to choose him, then I can't think of any way he'll get better without us making an escape, and thus far we've found _no_ escape down here!"

"Okay, we understand." Felicity's tone turned gentler. "We know the way to this room at least. S-So we just have to go back out and into the Chasm and hope the guard on Tier Seven hasn't come back yet. T-Then Roen or I can sneak off to the infirmary and grab Arin and then we can bring him back here!"

"That sounds like a crazy plan," Roen said, looking between the two of them. "B…But we probably have no other choice, do we?"

Daunte managed a smile at his friends. "Thank you for doing this for me. I know you guys are taking a huge risk for me, and there's no reward for it for you. It really means a lot to me."

"Of course there's a reward for us," Felicity told him, grabbing his hand. "Arin will get better and he'll have a real _True Rune_! So let's hurry and go and get him!"

"I agree," Roen said. "This is very risky, but you guys are the only family I have left. I've already lost so much, and I don't want to lose Arin too. Let's go and get him and bring him to the True Rune."

"Thanks again, guys." Daunte turned away from the True Rune and readied the lantern. "Let's get out of here and get this done quickly."

They began to leave the chamber when there was a sudden explosion of light. They cried out and quickly turned around. From the dais, the light from the True Rune had increased in strength and size. It grew larger and larger until it enveloped the entire room. The trio raised their hands to shield themselves from the light.

There was sudden movement from the dais and the light shot up high into the air. They gaped in shock at this spectacle. The light hovered there for several moments, unmoving.

Then, thin tendrils of light came out of the ball of light and swirled through the air. They circled around each other before they found their intended target.

Daunte gaped, and held out his right hand as though to ward off a blow. The tendrils of light spilled through his fingertips and circled around his wrist and arm. The tendrils increased in frequency, circling around his body in faster and faster motions.

" _Daunte_!" Felicity shrieked.

The remaining light shot down, and Daunte squeezed his eyes shut as his right hand exploded in light right in front of his face. He dropped the lantern, but didn't hear it break. He felt a surge of power fill his body, and his right hand grew hotter and hotter. He felt every ache and pain disappear from his body. His wrist no longer felt strained, the bruises on his knuckles faded away, and the lump on his head shrunk and smoothed over. The loose teeth on the left side of his mouth straightened and were firmly reset. He was being healed.

At the same time, a feeling of dread settled over his being. _No! Please NO!_

Then the light was gone, and the chamber became dark, save for the sparse amount of light emitting from the broken lantern on the floor. Daunte's right hand felt ungodly hot, and his squeezed his right wrist. His breathing was ragged and he hunched over, shaking his head violently in denial.

"Daunte!" Roen and Felicity grabbed his arms to keep him steady on his feet. "Daunte, are you all right?!"

"Daunte!" Roen shouted. He snatched the lantern from the floor and held it up high. "Daunte, look at your hand!"

Daunte didn't want to open his eyes. He didn't want to believe it was true. But he couldn't help himself. Unable to catch his breath, Daunte cracked his eyes open to look at the back of his trembling right hand.

The symbol he had seen in the light, on the dais, was branded into his skin.

* * *

Her right hand twitched violently, but even without it she had felt it. She opened her eyes and straightened in her seat. _That's it. The True Rune._

"Guard!" she shouted.

The door to her office slammed open and the guard posted outside hurried in. "Yes, Lady Matron?"

"The True Rune has been found," she told him.

"I-It has?!" the guard exclaimed.

She narrowed her eyes at him. "Do you doubt me?"

"N-No! Of course not, Lady Matron!" he bowed deeply.

"In any case, the True Rune has been found," she continued. "And judging from the power I just felt, the True Rune has chosen a master. We need to act quickly to find who now possesses the Rune. Send out the order for everyone to wake up. I'll need to have all the heathens and the guards checked."

"T-The guards too?!"

"Yes," she said firmly. "We have to know if the True Rune chose a guard, or if the High Clerics miscalculated and the Rune chose a child."

"I-It couldn't have possibly chosen a child! The heathens here are too sickly and malnourished for the True Rune to pay them any attention!"

"That doesn't matter. Somebody was chosen and we need to find them."

"Yes, Lady Ma—"

"Lady Matron!" another guard burst into the room. He bowed to her. "Lady Matron, forgive my intrusion but we've just received an emergency report from the Grand Citadel!"

"The _Grand Citadel_?!" the first guard cried out. "The High Clerics sent us a direct report?!"

She slowly rose from her seat, regarding the new guard with cold eyes. "What's the report?"

* * *

Outside the infirmary, Daunte regarded the True Rune affixed to his hand. Their timing couldn't have been any better. They had climbed out of the hole and had covered up the hole with a crate when the guard returned and ordered them to bed. Daunte had been shocked because they had wanted him to work all night, but he caught broken fragments of conversation from the guards. Something about an "emergency from the capital".

It didn't matter to Daunte. He gnashed his lower lip with his teeth as he continued to stare at the Rune on his hand. Roen and Felicity had been shuffled off to bed, but he still remembered their excitement that the True Rune chose Daunte.

" _It chose you! You, Daunte! That's incredible!"_

" _I'm not familiar with runes, though. What exactly is that Rune's power?"_

Daunte shook his head. _It doesn't matter what its power is. It needs to get off my hand and attach to Arin._

He entered the infirmary. Because the hour of the night the children resting inside were fast asleep, including Arin. Daunte hurried over to his brother's bedside. The dark bags were gone from around the boy's eyes, but his complexion wasn't getting any better. Daunte gave him a quick kiss on the head and reached under his blanket. He pulled out Arin's right hand and rested it on top of the blanket.

"Don't worry, Arin," he said softly. "I'm going to make you better." He pressed his right hand over Arin's. "True Rune, whatever you are. Please leave me and go to Arin."

Nothing happened. The symbol on Daunte's hand didn't react to his verbal command. Daunte glared at the Rune. "True Rune, get off my hand and go to Arin's hand! He needs you far more than I do!"

The True Rune still did not react. Daunte snarled, and let Arin go. "I don't know why you chose me, but I don't need you! _Arin_ needs you! Please, just let me go and go to Arin!" he shook his hand violently, but the symbol didn't budge. "Come on, don't do this to me! My brother is going to die unless you attach to him! I don't know what you are or how I'm supposed to use you, but you can't help my brother while being attached to me! Just get off me!"

"Daunte?"

Daunte slapped his left hand over his right one and looked up. "D-Dr. Yulin?!"

"What's the matter? Who are you talking to?" Dr. Yulin appeared from his room and was shrugging on his white doctor's coat. "It's very close to curfew, Daunte. You should hurry and get to bed."

"Dr. Yulin, you have to help me!" Daunte walked over to the man and showed him the Rune on his hand. "I can't get this off my hand! It needs to go on Arin!"

Dr. Yulin suddenly grasped his hand, and looked at it closely. After a moment, he gave Daunte a look of disbelief. "Daunte, what is this? Who put this rune on you?"

"Nobody did," Daunte said miserably. He leaned in close to whisper to Dr. Yulin, "I-I think this is the True Rune you were talking about yesterday."

Dr. Yulin's eyes went wide. "T-The _True Rune_?! You found it, Daunte?!"

"I wanted to bring it to Arin so it would attach to him. But it attached to me instead. I don't know how to get it off me, it's not obeying my comm—"

Dr. Yulin suddenly pushed Daunte towards the door of the infirmary. "Daunte, you need to leave right this minute! If the Matron or the guards see the True Rune on you, they will kill you! Hurry back to your room and hide the Rune!"

"H-How can I hide the Rune?" Daunte asked him. He looked towards Arin's bed, feeling his heartbeat in my throat. _I don't doubt that they'll kill me when they realize I have the True Rune. But what will happen to Arin?_

"Wear your work gloves at all times unless you're alone," Dr. Yulin implored him. "Don't bring any more attention to yourself, either. T…There must be some way to get you out of here before you're discovered. I-I don't know what I can do, but there must be some way!"

"Doctor, I ruined my work gloves yesterday. When the platform collapsed the rope tore my gloves to pieces."

"Here, I've got a spare pair." Dr. Yulin fished around in a nearby drawer before pulling out a tan-colored pair of gloves. They were larger than Daunte's hands, but they were in better shape than the ones he'd had before. "There's going to be some confusion over the next few days, so you might need to make a quick escape during this time."

"Is the confusion about the emergency the guards were talking about?"

"I'm not sure. I was actually just summoned to perform a physical examination on someone. I'll be a bit late for it, but I really don't care." Dr. Yulin grabbed Daunte by his shoulders. "But guard your life, Daunte. Things happen for a reason. The True Rune chose you for a reason."

"But it wasn't _supposed_ to choose me," Daunte said.

"Nevertheless it still chose you." He looked down at Daunte's hands again. He sighed quietly. "It seems to have healed your injuries, but it doesn't look like your hands are any better. So you must be _very_ careful."

It felt like too many things were happening at once. Daunte couldn't process all of it. The Rune's presence on his hand felt like a giant weight that he couldn't get rid of. He stormed back to his room, his anger rising with each step. The corridors looked empty—there didn't seem to be any guards nearby. But he was certain that it had to do with the aforementioned emergency.

It didn't really matter, though. The guards would return to their posts per usual and nothing would change.

Daunte slammed the door shut to his room. He sat down on his bed, looking at the True Rune on his hand. He didn't know how long he sat there glaring at his hand. He lost track of the passage of time. Clenching his teeth he grabbed his right hand with his fingernails and dug in deep. He squeezed as tightly as he could, and tears sprung to his eyes from the pain. He scratched the skin deep, as though he wanted to rip the Rune off with his fingernails.

But it didn't budge or react to his efforts.

Daunte dropped his hand away. The back of his hand was deeply scratched and he'd almost drawn blood. But the True Rune was untouched. _Why did you do this to me? You weren't supposed to choose me! You were supposed to choose Arin! Didn't you see how sickly he was?! I wanted to save him, but you ruined it! Now I'm stuck with you, and I don't even know what I can_ _ **do**_ _with you!_

He swallowed thickly and looked up at the ceiling. "What am I supposed to do?" he mumbled aloud, unable to hide the distress from his voice. "Mom…what can I do?"

The door to his room abruptly slammed open. Daunte shoved his hand under his blanket and flinched as three guards came in. He shrank a little into himself, unable to control his breathing. _Oh no, they found me!_

"Stay where you are, heathen," the first guard barked at him. "Your new roommate has arrived."

Daunte shifted slightly. _Roommate?_

The other two guards were carrying in an unconscious teenage boy. Daunte couldn't see the boy's face from his angle, but the boy's head flopped carelessly around on his neck as the guard carried him like a sack of potatoes. The boy was carried to Kass's old bed, where he was unceremoniously dumped onto the mattress.

"Tell the heathen _exactly_ what he's supposed to do," the first guard told Daunte. "As you know, we expect him to get it right on the first try. If he doesn't, we'll beat the correct methods into _both_ of you heathens."

The guards quickly left after that, locking the door behind them. Daunte let out a short breath, slowly withdrawing his hand from underneath the blanket. He gazed at the boy as he slowly rose to his feet. The boy didn't stir at all.

 _This is strange. There was an emergency from the capital, and then suddenly this one boy shows up in the middle of the night? This can't be a coincidence._

Daunte stared down at the boy who lay unconscious in what had been Kass's bed. Daunte guessed that the boy could be about his own age. The boy was dressed in the Dark Chasm's prison attire, but he looked different from the other children. His black hair was cut short, but it wasn't a haphazard cut job that the rest of them had. He had a…unique look to him and Daunte could tell that he was different from the rest of them. The boy certainly looked healthier than the rest of them, but there was more to it than that. He couldn't really understand why it was so, but…he somehow knew this boy was different.

The boy stirred on the cot, and he slowly woke up. Daunte jumped back slightly, startled. "A-Are you okay?" he asked quietly.

The boy's pale blue eyes abruptly opened as he snapped awake. Before Daunte could react, the boy launched himself from the cot and tackled Daunte to the floor. The boy's fist connected with Daunte's cheek, and the intense pain made Daunte angry. The anger gave him an adrenaline rush and he started grappling with the boy.

"Where am I?!" the boy demanded, struggling with Daunte. "Where are they?! What did you do with them?!"

Daunte didn't understand what he was talking about. He swung his own fist back and punched the boy in the face. The boy flew backwards off him and landed hard on his backside on the floor. Instead of furthering the attacks though, the boy simply sat there and nursed his cheek, his breathing ragged. Daunte sat up, glaring at him while wiping a trickle of blood off his own chin.

The boy glared at Daunte. "I'm not going to ask you again. Where are they?"

Daunte was angry enough by the unprovoked attack that he suddenly felt the urge to be sarcastic with the boy. But he also knew that if he acted on this impulse then the fight would just continue. So Daunte just shook his head and said, "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Don't lie to me!" the boy shouted, scrambling to his feet. Daunte stood up as well. "You took them, didn't you?! You took all of them! So you'd better tell me where they are, or you'll be sorry!"

"I don't know!" Daunte snapped. "I don't have any clue about what you're talking about! I haven't left the Dark Chasm in _three years_ , so how could I have taken anyone?!"

"Dark Chasm?" the anger left the boy's face and he looked confused. "W-Wait. Where am I?"

"The Dark Chasm," Daunte repeated himself. He trudged over to his own bed. "It's a prison mine for children in Nagarea."

"N-NAGAREA?!" the boy shouted. The sound startled Daunte and he looked at the other boy. "I-I-I-I'm in _Nagarea_?!"

"Yes," Daunte said, sitting down on his bed. "Where else would you be?"

"B-But this…this isn't…" the boy gestured with his hand wildly. "W-We haven't had formal diplomatic relations with Nagarea in over a hundred years! And w-we've _certainly_ never ventured into Nagarea! I—" the boy abruptly sat back down. "So it was true. If I'm in Nagarea, then it was true. They _were_ behind it all."

Daunte stared at him in silence for a long moment. Everything that came out of the other boy's mouth confused him. It was easy to tell by what he was saying though that he was a foreigner. "…I don't understand," he mumbled quietly.

The boy looked up, and quickly stood. Daunte sprung up as well, expecting another attack, but the other boy raised his hands. "I-I'm sorry I attacked you," he said calmly. "It's just that so much has happened in the last 24 hours that my emotions are a bit out of control. What's your name?"

"…Daunte," Daunte answered after a moment of silence. "Who are you?"

The boy straightened suddenly, and saluted in an unfamiliar manner, his right arm horizontal to his chest. "My name is Surya Falenas, a member of the Queen's Knights in the Queendom of Falena. My family has gone missing, and I need to find them."


	3. Chapter One: Part Three

Part Three

Daunte stared at Surya in stunned silence. _Falena? He's from Falena?_

He knew what Falena was. Falena was the only country Nagarea shared a border with, to their northeast. He knew that Nagarea was once in conflict with Falena due to Falena's refusal to accept their religion. He had heard stories of how Falena utilized dragon horses for military purposes, and the thought had always disturbed Daunte somewhat. As accordance with the Nagarist Order, dragon horses were foul and evil monsters, and it was the duty of all believers to expunge them from the world.

 _But according to how our religion is interpreted now,_ _ **I'm**_ _seen as foul and evil too._

But Daunte was still surprised to see an actual Falenean, especially one belonging to the royal family face-to-face. The last known contact that he was aware of Nagarea having with Falena was in the 440s-450s. Otherwise Nagarea had kept to itself since the Great Earthquake over 100 years prior.

But apparently that was at an end, as shown with the boy standing in front of him.

"Can you tell me exactly where we are, or where my family may have been taken?" Surya asked him, sitting down on his bed. "W-We don't have an updated map of Nagarea, so I have no idea how to navigate your country."

Daunte shook his head, and rubbed at his bruised cheek again. "We're in the Dark Chasm. It's a labor camp along the east coast. Other than that I don't know what to tell you. I have no idea where your family is."

"Okay, so we're on the east coast," Surya said, nodding slightly. "So that means the border is further—wait." He looked at Daunte. "Did you just say this was a labor camp?"

"It's a prison for children," Daunte clarified. He sat down on his own bed.

"W-Why a prison camp? I…" Surya waved a furious hand. "I have to get out of here. I need to find my family and rescue them."

"What happened?"

"It's difficult to explain. All I know is that all of my cousins are missing. The only lead we had led to Nagarea, but it looks like I got captured too."

"Y…You don't know where they could possibly be in Nagarea?" Daunte asked quietly.

"No, of course not! We only know that they were brought here, but I don't know _anything_ about this country! It…" Surya shook his head. "I'm wasting my time here. I don't know how long I've been unconscious, but I'm losing precious seconds here." He stormed towards the door.

"It's locked," Daunte said, even as he tried the door handle.

"Damn it all!" Surya took a couple steps back and braced himself. "Well then I'll just _kick_ the door down!"

"Are you crazy?!" Daunte scrambled to his feet and rushed to his side. "Do you have any idea what they'll do to the both of us if you do that?!"

"I'll fight them," Surya snapped. "I've been training to be a Queen's Knight my whole life. A couple of zealot guards won't stop me!"

"It's more than just a "couple" of guards, though!" Daunte felt odd about Surya's use of the word zealot, but he didn't get offended. Particularly since it perfectly described the guards of the Dark Chasm. "They will come in here and literally _beat_ you into submission! I don't doubt you can fight, but what can you do with your bare hands against their batons and whips?! Especially when it's more than one of them?!"

Surya's anger was visibly rising in his face with Daunte's words, but he looked away and let out a short breath. "From what you're telling me, I won't be able to get out of here on my own."

"Nobody has ever escaped the Dark Chasm alive," Daunte confessed softly.

Surya looked at him again. "Then I'll need your help."

"W-What?"

"Help me get out of here, and I'll take you with me to Falena," Surya told him. "You'll never have to work a day in your life again. I'll even make arrangements for you to have residence inside the royal palace of Sol-Falena. I just need you to help me get my things back and get out of this place. Do we have a deal?"

The offer was tempting. Escaping to a foreign land where he would always be taken of? He wanted to say yes, but…

 _But what will happen to Arin? Arin can't be moved yet. And until I find a way to get this True Rune off my hand and transferred to Arin, he's going to remain sick. If I take Surya's offer, then this probably means he'll want me to help him find his cousins. But I can't drag Arin everywhere we go in his condition! Especially if we're on the run! That'll ensure I won't be able to get the proper medical care for him!_

Very reluctantly, Daunte said, "I can't do that."

"Why not?" Surya demanded. "I haven't seen the rest of this place, but I can already tell the air quality is very poor. And you certainly look like you haven't had a full meal in a while. I'm offering you a new life so why won't you help me?!"

"My brother," Daunte said. "My brother is very sick. I would love to get out of here, but he's not well enough to be moved. And if we take him with us, I'll have virtually no time to take care of him! I—"

"Do you think he'll get any better in this place?!" Surya snapped. "I'll give him a home in Falena too if you help me! But do you think just staying here and wasting away will help your brother any?!"

"Let me worry about my brother," Daunte snapped. "But your offer carries too much risk. I can't just up and leave now."

 _I thought that room would give us a way out. Those monsters had to have come in there from somewhere. But we didn't see any way out. It might be hidden behind a wall like the True Rune was, but we'll probably get lost down there looking. And I don't know how long Arin would last down there._

" _Fine_." Surya turned away from him and stormed to his bed. "But I _will_ find my family. With or without your help." He stretched out on the bed and faced the wall, giving Daunte his back.

Daunte stared at him for a long moment before retreating to his bed. He felt stupid for not taking Surya's offer, but it wasn't something he could make a spontaneous decision for. He needed a clear-cut way out of the Chasm before he would even try to leave. The risks to Arin's health were just too high.

 _And I don't want to leave Roen and Felicity behind._

Daunte glared at the back of his right hand. "If you had chosen Arin like you were supposed to, I wouldn't be in this mess."

"What?" Surya looked over his shoulder at him.

Daunte flushed and shook his head. "N-Nothing." He stretched out on his own bed, but the bitterness he felt didn't go away.

 _I'm stuck with a power I don't want. And I have no idea what it is or how to use it._

* * *

Predictably, Daunte didn't sleep well the rest of the night and woke up feeling very lethargic. Briefly he wondered if he'd dreamt the events of yesterday, but that quickly faded when he looked towards Kass's bed and saw Surya sleeping in it. Then he raised his right hand and frowned as he saw the accursed True Rune still affixed to it.

 _It doesn't matter. I'm going to get this thing off my hand if it's the last thing I do!_

As he sat up, the horn sounded for the children to wake up. Surya was awake in an instant and on his feet. "What's going on?"

"It's time to start the day," Daunte told him. He didn't doubt that the other boy was furious with Daunte's lack of enthusiasm to help him, but Daunte wanted to help Surya at least adjust to his new environment. "They're about to unlock the doors, so we'll have to get dressed quickly. You can follow the others to the dining hall, but I have to run to the infirmary and check on my brother."

Surya quickly shook his head. "I'm not separating from you. I don't know anything about this place."

"Just keep your head down and keep quit," Daunte said, getting into his work clothes. "To be honest though, they'll probably still hit you but if you don't talk back to the guards then it lessens the chances of it happening."

Surya moved closer to him, looking at him with a hard look. "If you would just help me find my family, then both your brother and you can escape this nightmare."

"I don't know _how_ to get out of here," Daunte said. "And even if I do find a way out, my first priority is to take care of Arin. I haven't been outside the Dark Chasm in three years, and I have no way of knowing where your family is or how to rescue him." Remembering the True Rune on his hand, Daunte quickly pulled on the gloves Dr. Yulin had given.

"I _will_ get out of here," Surya said firmly. "And I will find my family."

Daunte sighed shortly. "I know."

Surya kept to his word though and followed Daunte to the infirmary. As he entered the infirmary though, he was surprised to see Dr. Yulin up and about, tending to the wounded children.

"Ah, Daunte!" Dr. Yulin's gaze quickly went to Daunte's right hand and he visibly relaxed when he saw that it was covered. "Good morning. Arin regained conscious briefly an hour ago."

"He did?!" Daunte exclaimed. He hurried to his brother's bedside. Despite this good news, the child looked no better today. "D-Did he say anything?"

"I don't believe he had the strength to," Dr. Yulin said. Daunte felt his heart drop into his stomach. "But he was able to open his eyes and look at me. I told him that you came to visit him every morning and evening, and that made him smile."

Daunte nodded. "Has he coughed up any more of that black stuff?"

"No, not in the last few hours. Ah." Dr. Yulin turned his attention to Surya. "We met last night, though you were unconscious. I have very little power here but I will do all that I can to ensure your health here."

Surya hadn't followed Daunte to Arin's bedside. He was staring down at a young girl lying in bed. Her arm was in a splint and her face was wrapped up. She was no doubt one of the most severely injured children in the mining cart accident. Surya looked horrified at her physical condition.

"Surya?" Daunte said uncertainly.

Surya suddenly spat into his palm and began rubbing the back of his left hand. With the moisture, the smooth skin began to… _smear_ all of a sudden. Daunte looked at Dr. Yulin in confusion, but the doctor quickly stepped forward. "I knew it," the doctor breathed.

Surya raised his left hand over the girl, and Daunte saw that the back of his hand had changed. There was a pale blue symbol embedded into his hand, in the shape of a teardrop.

" _Kindness drops_."

Surya's hand glowed, and the shape of the symbol that was on his hand suddenly appeared in the air. Right before Daunte's eyes a gentle rainfall fell over the injured girl, soaking her bedsheet, and the dressing she wore.

But very quickly, the girl's painful whimpering grew weaker and weaker until she seemed to hold her breath. Then just as suddenly, the rainfall was gone and she was no longer soaked.

Dr. Yulin grabbed Surya's wrist and looked at it. "The _Water Rune_ ," he said. "I-I thought I felt something odd with you when I examined you last night, and I suspected it was this rune. But something told me not to bring it to the Matron's attention." He sighed quickly, and covered his mouth. "And I'm glad I did."

"D-Doctor!" the girl sat up with such speed that all three of them jumped back. "Doctor, I'm fine! I'm really fine! I've never felt better!" she began pulling at the splint on her arm. Daunte reflexively flinched, but he saw the limb easily inside the splint, and it looked perfectly healthy.

"Surya!" he hissed. He raced over to the other boy as Dr. Yulin hurriedly helped remove the girl's dressing. He grabbed Surya by his hand and pulled him over to Arin's bed. "Surya, please heal Arin next!"

Surya stared down at Arin. Daunte didn't like the discomfort in his face. "T-This is your brother, Daunte?"

"Yes," Daunte said. "Arin is very sick. He's so ill that he can't get out of bed. But I promise you that if you use your Water Rune on him, I will do everything in my power to get you out of here. But please help him."

Surya continued to look down at Arin for a long moment of silence. Then he looked at Daunte. The discomfort in his face hadn't eased any. "…Daunte," he said at length.

" _Please_ hurry!" Daunte insisted. "Before the guards come in to drag us off for the Morning Prayer!"

Surya slowly nodded. "All right." He held out his left hand over Arin. " _Kindness Drops_."

The gentle rainfall returned, soaking Arin within seconds. Daunte bit into his knuckles hard as he watched the spell take course. _Please heal Arin! Please heal Arin!_

The spell finished, and Arin dried in an instant. The color had returned to his face, and his mouth was no longer white. Daunte knelt beside his brother's bedside and smoothed his palm over Arin's forehead. "Arin? Can you hear me?"

Arin's eyes suddenly snapped open. He pitched forward in bed and Daunte was so startled that he fell backwards onto his backside. "Ar—"

Arin let out a horrible, inhuman sound, and started vomiting violently all over the bedsheet in his lap. Daunte shouted in alarm, and scrambled to his feet. "Arin!"

The putrid fluid coming out of Arin's mouth was as black as tar, the same color as the fluid he'd been coughing up all the other times before. "W-What—didn't—" Daunte gaped at Surya as he struggled to hang onto Arin. "I-It _didn't work_?!"

"It's not that at all," Dr. Yulin interjected. He grabbed Arin from Daunte and patted the boy on his back. " _Kindness Drops_ is indeed a powerful healing spell, but it's also the least powerful of the Water Rune's spells. I-It looks like the healing spell reduced Arin's fever and caused an evacuation of his lungs, but…"

"But?" Daunte echoed. He looked back up at Surya.

"Your brother is sick," Surya told him quietly. "Like _really_ sick. One healing spell isn't going to be enough for him. He needs multiple uses of spell to get most of his strength back. But since his physical condition was caused by…this." He gestured squeamishly at the black fluid on the blanket. "This is probably caused by the living conditions down here. With as sick as he is now, I'm shocked not more of you are sick like this."

"So we can heal his body and restore him to fit health," Dr. Yulin said, helping Arin to settle back down. The boy had already lost consciousness again. "But it won't make a difference in the long run if his lungs keep getting infected like this."

 _And his lungs will keep getting infected so long as he's in the Dark Chasm._ Daunte looked at Arin again. A hard lump had formed in his throat and it made it difficult to swallow.

"Daunte—" Surya said.

"—sure Dr. Yulin's in?!" came a loud voice from outside the infirmary. It was coming from down the hall.

"He has to be!" another voice said. "And he'll have to listen to us when he tell him the brat has to go!"

Daunte stiffened, and squeezed his hand around Arin's. The brat…did they mean—

"I'm surprised Lady Matron didn't order it sooner! The heathen's brother tried to kill her and everything! This'll definitely teach him a lesson!"

Dr. Yulin had been gathering Arin's blankets. Now he was still and his face darkened. "Excuse me." his tone was cold, almost scary. He stormed towards the infirmary's door, slamming the dirty sheets into a laundry bin, before stomping out of the infirmary and slamming the door shut behind him.

Daunte realized he was hyperventilating, and he looked at Arin. They were going to kill Arin. _They were going to kill Arin!_

Something caught Daunte's eye. He looked down towards his right hand in confusion. It was so strange, but…even with the glove on the hand looked like it was… _flickering_.

"Daunte, calm down!" Surya grabbed his shoulder. "M-My Water Rune isn't really developed, but I can try and use it on the guards so we can escape!"

Dr. Yulin had already began a shouting match with the guards in the hallway. Daunte tried to calm down, but he didn't know how. "D-Do you have any other of those spells? Can you heal A-Arin more?"

"I only have two _Kindness Drops_ left," Surya said. He surveyed the room grimly. The other remaining children were watching Surya, pleading at him with quiet voices and desperate eyes to heal them. "And even those two might not be enough to get Arin out of that bed on his own."

Daunte climbed to his feet. "I made a promise and I'll keep it. I'll get you out of here so you can find your family. B-But we have to take Arin. And my friends, Roen and Felicity."

"I would never refuse your brother, Daunte. And if your friends can help us, then I'll be more than happy to try and escape with them." Surya looked at him then. "Daunte, I want to try something. It won't be as effective as spell as it would on a single person, but I want to try centralizing all these remaining children on one bed and try using one spell of Kindness Drops on them. It won't fully heal them, but it might make them better off than they were before."

"I'll help!" the fully healed girl hopped off her bed and hurried towards them. Outside, the shouting grew louder and louder, causing several children to quake in terror. "Let me help!"

"I'll do whatever you want if it means saving Arin," Daunte said. "And I want these other children healed too. After we're done here, we can meet up with Roen and Felicity in order to figure out a plan."

* * *

Surya's gambit only paid off marginally. His one casting of _Kindness Drops_ did indeed heal all the children situated on a single bed, but it wasn't enough to completely heal their injuries. With one _Kindness Drops_ left, Surya wanted to conserve the spell.

But the children were in much better shape than they were before. They were certainly better off than Arin was.

"Daunte, Surya!" Dr. Yulin stormed into the room as they reset each child into their beds. "The Morning Prayers are about to start! You need to hurry or you will be punished for missing the Prayer!"

"What about Arin?!" Daunte demanded.

"I managed to make the guards go away so Arin's life is safe for the moment," Dr. Yulin reassured him. "But they will surely be back later, but I won't allow them to take Arin. I swear to you that they won't take Arin, Daunte."

Daunte nodded. "Thank you, Doctor."

"Now both of you, get going." He directed them towards the door as he pulled out a fresh blanket for Arin. "Stay on your guard today."

"We will." Daunte clenched and unclenched his right hand. The strange flickering on his hand had already disappeared, but they definitely needed to be on their guard. With the True Rune affixed to his hand, and the pronouncement of Arin's death, apparently by the Matron, he knew that he couldn't wait any longer.

 _We need to get out of here, and we need to do it today._

* * *

On route to the Chapel, Daunte heard the muted sound of thunder overhead and his pulse quickened. _Oh no. It's raining!_

The rain would make the air cooler and make up for the intense humidity they had experienced over the last few days, but the rain would also hamper their escape efforts. Since the conditions of the Dark Chasm were always kept poor, mudslides were a common occurrence inside the shaft. The mudslides would often cause children and even the guards to plunge to their deaths in the Lower Tier. Daunte knew the lower he was assigned today, the lower chance there was for him to be caught up in a mudslide. Unless a falling body fell on top of him.

 _This will be difficult, but we have to do it today!_

"Daunte!"

The hallway in front of the Chapel was nearly empty, but Roen and Felicity hurried towards them. "Daunte, is this the new guy? We heard all about him at breakfast!"

"Surya Falenas," Surya introduced, saluting in the same way he had saluted Daunte last night. "I'm a Queen's Knight in Falena."

"Falena?!" Roen gasped. "You're a real _Falenean_?!"

"I'm Felicity, and this is Roen," Felicity said, gesturing to the other boy. "I'd asked what you think of the Dark Chasm, but I can probably guess what you think."

"Never mind, we need to talk," Daunte said. He stepped in close to his friends. "We need to escape today. They've already sentenced Arin to death."

"W-What?!" Felicity hissed in horror.

"They haven't found your True Rune, Daunte?" Roen whispered to him.

"True Rune?!" Surya spoke up, looking at Daunte.

"They haven't," Daunte said, looking over his shoulder warily. "But I don't care if they find out about it or not. I have to get Arin out of here!"

"I've been assigned to Tier Seven today, so I'll monitor that hole," Roen said. "Maybe sometime tonight we can sneak back into it?"

"I'm on Tier Five," Felicity said just as softly. "You two are on Tier Three."

So they were on a much higher Tier during a rainstorm. Daunte swallowed thickly and shook his head. _I just have to hope we don't have any mudslides today._

"What are Tiers?" Surya asked.

"HEY!" a guard shouted. "Hurry up and get into the Chapel, heathens!"

"We're coming," Felicity said, forcing a smile at the guard.

"Do you worship Nagar in Falena?" Roen hissed to Surya.

"No," Surya said, and left it at that.

All of the pews were filled again, so the group of four stood in the back. Surya's expression grew grimmer and grimmer as he surveyed the hundreds of malnourished, lethargic children around them. He sucked in a quick breath when a guard struck another boy with his baton, and his hands went right for his waist. He quickly looked down as though expecting to see something there, and his hands dropped to his sides as though realizing something. "I gotta get it back," he muttered.

"Get what back?" Daunte whispered to him.

"My weapon," Surya said. "My tri-nunchaku. Same as my father."

 _His father?_ Daunte felt a strange feeling inside of him, maybe something akin to nostalgia. But as much as he strained his mind towards the memory, he couldn't properly form the image of his father in his mind. It was the same as all the other times he tried to remember his mother.

"Silence!" the shout came from the dais. The children abruptly silenced as one of the lower Clerics stepped forward, his hands raised. "Evil heathens, chattering incessantly on holy ground?! None of you are yet worthy of forgiveness!"

"Where is the Matron?!" Roen whispered, glancing sideways at Daunte. "Isn't the Matron supposed to lead the Morning Prayer?!"

Daunte craned his neck to look around the dais and the rest of the Chapel, but he didn't see the Matron anywhere. Why wasn't she there?

 _Does she know? Is she looking for the True Rune right now?_ Daunte clapped his left hand over his right one. _B-But how could she have known so quickly?!_

The lower Cleric continued to shout condemnation at them, but Daunte didn't notice. He squeezed his hand tighter and tried to remain calm and not draw attention to himself. He looked down again and his stomach did flip-flops. Even while covering it, the flickering had visibly returned to his hand.

 _What is the True Rune doing? Is it_ _ **trying**_ _to draw attention towards me?_

The children all knelt in prayer, and Daunte was relieved that nobody seemed to notice the flickering. He squeezed his eyes shut, but he didn't pray. _Please, please stop flickering! I just need to keep my head down today so that I can escape!_

Once the prayer finished the children rose to their feet. Daunte checked his hand and saw that it was back to normal. _What's causing that anyway?!_

"Hey, heathen!"

Daunte stiffened as a guard approached. Except the guard wasn't looking at him. "I'm talking to you!" he jabbed Surya in the sternum with his index finger. "Don't think we didn't see how you didn't immediately kneel for prayer! The evil inside of you must be extinguished!"

"I'm not evil," Surya said, glaring at him.

The guard's glare deepened behind his veil. "What did you say, heathen?!"

"The only evil I see here is you," Surya said defiantly. "You, the proud adult flexing his muscle beating little kids and working them to death. You must be so proud of yourself."

"You son of a bitch!" the guard hollered. He yanked out his baton and swung it at Surya's head. But Surya quickly caught the baton in his hand, his face unmoving and his gaze unflinching on the guard's eyes. "Don't you _ever_ insult my mother like that again." His tone had menace to it.

The guard visibly struggled with Surya over the baton. It was astonishing to see the teenager have an evenly matched battle of strength and will with a grown adult.

 _He said he was a knight. I can see he was telling the truth._

Daunte saw fear flickering in the guard's eyes before he growled in fury. "You—"

"Enough!" a second hurried over. He swatted his associate on the shoulder. "Didn't you hear the Matron's debriefing this morning, stupid?! This kid is off limits!"

"I know, but he has a bad attitude!" the first guard snapped. He finally yanked his baton free, but Daunte had a feeling that he only got it back because Surya let it go. The guard turned his glare then to Daunte. "Did you find that funny, heathen?!"

Daunte didn't even feel a smile on his mouth, so he had no idea where the guard got the idea that he found his ridiculous display funny. He knew he could remain silent or talk back to the guard. Ultimately he only shrugged.

Despite this, the guards thankfully seemed satisfied with his nonverbal answer and moved on. The four of them moved towards the exit and Daunte saw that all of the other children had seen what had happened. Most looked so tired that Daunte couldn't tell if they were scared or happy. But several smiled at him.

 _Why do they look happy with me? I didn't do anything brave, Surya did._

* * *

The rainfall was still heavy, and the ground sank beneath their feet as they headed to work. Daunte was glad for the cooler air after the humidity for the last several days, but there was still a danger to working in the rain.

"Stay safe," Felicity whispered to them, squeezing their hands.

"I'll keep watch on my Tier," Roen whispered. "Let's make our escape tonight."

Daunte nodded and looked at Surya. But the other boy was looking at their surroundings with disbelief. The walls of the shaft were soft to the touch. Digging through them was going to be more difficult than normal. "What exactly do you guys do here?"

"Dig," Daunte said. They were herded into the lift with their group for Tier Three. "And clear the rocks out of the Lower Tier." The lift didn't have a roof, so they were soaked in seconds as it made its climb.

"No offense, but this isn't an appropriate workplace for children," Surya said, looking down the opening of the shaft.

"According to the High Clerics, we've committed the crime of Original Sin," Daunte told him. "Original Sin stipulates that evil is hereditary, so if somebody commits a crime then whoever shares their blood will also commit a crime. So we are punished accordingly."

"S-So you guys just have guilt _by proxy_?!" Surya exclaimed incredulously. "I've never heard anything so ridiculous in my life!"

"Quiet!" the guard in the lift with them snapped. "Both of you will work double today for your incessant chattering! Wait." He glared at Daunte. "Your brother is still indisposed. So you'll work _triple_ today!"

Daunte didn't realize care how long they forced him to work. The longer he worked, the easier it would be for him to find an escape since the guards didn't really watch him at night. He felt uneasy as they reached Tier Three though, and saw a mini river of mud and water running down the length of the Tier, but he tried to remain calm.

 _Just a little while longer._

Then it happened. They were getting their tools ready when a booming horn sounded. It was so loud and sudden that everyone jumped and screamed in shocked.

Then the shout came. "Shakedown!"

And Daunte immediately filled with dread.

The children dropped their bags and hurried to line up against the walls, creating a spiral line down the entire length of the Chasm. Daunte looked at Surya, and the two took advantage of the confusion to move down the Tiers to be as close as possible to Roen and Felicity. Daunte looked down and saw that his friends were doing the same. But before the four could meet up, one of the guards blew a whistle and they stood to attention.

"Attention!" came the shout from the Upper Tier. Everyone lifted their eyes up and saw the Matron standing at the highest point, glaring down at all of them. "Remove your gloves and pull what little hair you have out of your faces! Guards, also remove your gloves and your hoods! Have your palms face down and your foreheads cleared away!"

The guards seemed mortified at the fact that they were similarly being lumped together with the children for this shakedown. A few even muttered a couple of curse words as they threw off their gloves and pulled back their hoods.

But it was too obvious to Daunte what the Matron wanted.

 _She's looking for the True Rune._

Daunte collected some rain in his gloved palm and used it to slick back his short bangs. But his heart thudded painfully as he slowly removed his gloves and stuffed them into his waistband. The True Rune's green-yellow symbol stuck out like a brand on his pale skin. Seeing as everyone else was distracted for the moment, Daunte quickly smeared both hands on the slick mud wall behind him. It worked to at least marginally cover up the rune without suspicion.

"Dammit," Surya hissed. He rubbed his own hands on the wall to cover his Water Rune. Daunte looked for Roen and Felicity, and his stomach dropped as he saw panic in his friends' faces. Above them, the Matron was moving down the shaft, examining everyone's hands carefully and checking everyone's foreheads. Daunte noticed though that the Matron still wore _her_ hood, and she had gloves on her hands.

 _It's because she doesn't have a True Rune, so there's no need to check her._

As the minutes ticked by, the dread inside of Daunte grew more and more. The Matron wasn't simply glancing at hands. She was fully scrutinizing them. If some hands were too dirty she forced the child to scrub their hands on their pants and then represent them to her. Daunte looked down at his right hand. The dark mud covered the True Rune's symbol, but the heavy rain was causing the mud to become runny and drip off his hands and down his arms. He quickly looked up and saw the Matron on Tier Two and getting closer to him, checking both the children's hands and the guard's hands. One guard said something briefly to the Matron, and she immediately got in his face and spoke with rapid, harsh words. Daunte couldn't tell what she was saying, but whatever she was saying was clearly intimidating the guard.

"Daunte," Surya hissed to him.

Daunte looked at him and then looked back down at his hand. The rain had washed away more mud, and the symbol was now partially visible. He jerked his hand behind his breath, his breathing ragged. _I can't keep smearing mud on it to hide it! The rain keeps washing it away and she'll make me clear it off! She's going to catch me!_

He hesitated, wanting to say exactly what was on his mind but also fearful of drawing attention towards himself. Ultimately, he decided to express his fear. "I have to get out of here."

"Give me a second," Surya said, slowly drawing his left hand behind his back. "As soon as she comes towards us, I'll—"

"HEY!"

Both boys jumped as a guard rounded upon them. "You two are whispering!" he hollered. "What are you whispering about?! And you're hiding your hands, aren't you?! Why are you hiding your hands?!"

Daunte opened his mouth, but the guard wasn't interested in his answer. "Lady Matron! These two heathens are acting suspiciously!"

The Matron did turned towards them and Daunte's heart leapt into his throat. He locked his arm behind his back as she walked towards them. Despite the heavy rain and the slippery mud, her white robes were only slightly muddy around the hem of the robes, and her feet didn't seem to be sinking into the mud as everybody else's feet were. But that only made Daunte more and more nervous. _She's going to find me. How will I get out of this mess alive?! What will happen to Arin if they kill me?!_

"What's the matter?" the Matron said sharply, glaring at the guard.

"These two heathens were talking during the shakedown!" the guard reported, gesturing to Daunte and Surya. " _And_ they're hiding their hands from us!"

The Matron looked at Daunte for a long moment, and then at Surya. Then she glared at the guard. "This boy doesn't have it, you idiot." she pointed to Surya. "He was brought in last night and he was examined. If he had it, I would've found it by now. Do you think having hair-trigger overreactions makes you an efficient guard?"

The guard flushed with embarrassment. "I…uh…"

"It's no wonder it's taken the Theocracy this long to find the damned thing with idiots like you in charge here," the Matron said sharply. "The priorities of some of you seemed to be very skewered. You seem more intent on throwing your weight around here and instigating violence than actually making any progress."

The guard sputtered, but the children around Daunte shifted with discomfort and confusion. Daunte heard broken fragments of conversation around them.

"What is 'it'?"

"Are we looking for something?"

"But I thought this was divine punishment!"

"What is she talking about?"

"Silence!" the Matron hollered. The whispers immediately ceased. "Never forget that you ARE here because you are sinners as accordance with Original Sin! Working here IS your divine punishment!"

Daunte couldn't keep calm. Now that the Matron was aware of the True Rune, she didn't seem to be hiding much about what their true purpose was there. And her statement about their divine punishment unfortunately confirmed what Daunte had feared.

 _She won't stop working us to death even after she gets the True Rune._

Daunte's hand suddenly became hot. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a glowing green-yellow light coming from his hand. It was a lot stronger than the flickering he had been experiencing before. And the light was a _lot_ more visible than the flickering had been.

 _Oh no._

The Matron's back was to him, but she suddenly stiffened, even as the children around Daunte gaped at the light behind him. "That power." She quickly turned around to fact Daunte. She didn't react to the light behind him, but her tone shifted. "You."

Daunte wanted to speak, but he couldn't find the words. The Matron reached around him and wrenched his right hand out from behind his back. The True Rune's symbol was still glowing brightly in her face.

"This is it," the Matron said. Her blue eyes went wide. "This is the True Rune."

"I-It is?!" the guard shouted in astonishment. "By the power of Nagar! A real True Rune!"

The Matron met Daunte's eyes with a cold gaze. "Where did you find this, boy?"

Daunte still couldn't find the words to speak. He choked and stammered, unable to form a sentence. He was so frightened and full of dread that he was afraid he would vomit. _It's over. It's all over._

"Why did you hide this from me?" the Matron continued. She leaned in so close to his face that their foreheads were almost touching. "Did you think you _would_ be able to hide this from me? Do you realize what you've done? Don't you care about your brother's well-being?"

Daunte knew he had the choice between being silent or talking back to her. He was frightened, but he also knew the truth about everything. "Y-You're going to kill Arin anyway."

The Matron twitched, but she didn't look away. "Excuse me?"

"You a-already sentenced Arin to death!" Daunte sputtered. "I know you did! A-And I know the truth about everything! You don't care about our salvation! You just wanted this rune! And you've been w-working us to death to find it!"

The Matron didn't deny the accusation, even as the voices of the children rose with shock and horror at Daunte's words. One of the lower Clerics hurried over to them. "Lady Matron, we can send for a runemaster to—"

"It won't make any difference," the Matron said, glancing at him. "Runemasters can't remove True Runes. The only way to get if off of him is if the Rune leaves him voluntarily or if he dies."

Daunte jumped, but the Matron continued. "But if we kill him we have the risk of the True Rune jumping to another child before we can take It." the Matron looked back at Daunte. "So you either have to make the True Rune leave you, boy, or I'll cut off your right hand. Will you give me the Rune?"

Daunte had no idea how to get the True Rune off his hand. If he knew then Arin would possess it instead of him. Overhead he heard a shriek, but his mind was too muddled. He didn't know what to do.

"You won't give it to me?" the Matron asked him. She gestured behind her. "Then your hand it is—"

"LOOK OUT!"

More shrieks overhead interrupted them, and Daunte heard a rumble. He looked up, as did the Matron. A cascade of dark liquid suddenly spewed over the side of the Upper Tier. The First Tier was suddenly caught up in the current. Most of the guards and children were able to flatten themselves against the walls and duck into tunnels, but some were caught up.

Daunte let out a short breath. _A mudslide._ He was never so happy to see such a danger natural disaster in his life.

The Matron turned away to shout something, and as she did a hand thrust into Daunte's face. " _Fog of Deception_."

It was Surya. And the words no sooner left his mouth than a sudden fog enveloped around Daunte. He couldn't see anybody, though he heard the shrieks of terror and the rumbling of the mudslide getting closer to him. After a moment a hand grabbed his and he was being pulled along. "Come on!"

Daunte ran with Surya, slipping and sliding along the way and trying to outrun the mudslide. Other children and even guards were likewise running from the mudslide. The area surrounding Daunte still looked foggy though, and he hung onto Surya and prayed that he wouldn't miss his footing and fall to his death.

"Surya! Daunte!" Roen shouted from somewhere. "Where are you guys?!"

The fog quickly evaporated around Daunte and he suddenly became face-to-face with Roen and Felicity. The pair shrieked when they saw them. "W-What the—you guys just suddenly appeared!" Felicity shouted.

"I casted a spell," Surya said, showing off his Water Rune. "But never mind, we need to get out of here now."

"Yeah, the Matron discovered you!" Roen exclaimed. He wrung his hands a little. "L-Let's find Arin and get back up to my Tier!"

Daunte realized they were on Tier Five, which was the Tier that led to the living areas and the Chapel. "A-Arin," he gasped. "I have to get Arin!"

"Before we do, I need my weapon back," Surya said. Around them children and guards were continuing to flee in terror. A guard even pushed past them to run down the tunnel towards the barracks, but he slipped in the mud and hit his head on a rock, knocking him unconscious. "And it's best if the three of you arm yourselves too. We're probably going to need to fight our way out of here."

"I know where the armory is," Felicity said grimly. "But shouldn't we get Arin first?"

"They'll engage us the minute they regroup," Surya told them. "I understand the urgency to get Arin, but we need to be ready for a fight first."

"Daunte, what should we do?" Roen asked him. "Should we go to the armory first, or get Arin?"

Daunte wanted to save Arin first and foremost, but he had enough presence of mind to realize that capturing _him_ would be the guard's first priority after the mudslide ended. If they went for Arin first, it would be more difficult to get to the armory afterword. So he said, "The armory."

"All right," Felicity said, though she was clearly surprised by his answer. She knelt beside the unconscious guard and unhooked the keys from his belt. "Follow me."

There was indeed too much chaos going on that none of the guards noticed the four of them running for the armory. Daunte hoped that nobody died in the mudslide, though he wouldn't be too heartbroken if the guards did. Or the Matron.

"Here we are," Felicity said. Unlike the rest of the Chasm, the door to the armory was a steel door compared to the wooden doors everywhere else. Felicity fiddled with the keys while the rest kept watch. Daunte's heart thudded with the passing of each second and he kept glancing over his shoulder. _Let me get to Arin in time!_

"Here!" Felicity said, holding up the key in question. She unlocked the door and they rushed inside. The room was filled with weapon, though mostly batons, whips, and spears. But they were plenty of other types of weapons. The four scattered throughout the room to find a weapon that would suit them.

"Here they are," Surya said, finding his tri-nunchaku resting on the table in the center of the armory, the three sections folded neatly. It was bright red and Surya skillfully swung the tri-nunchaku around briefly before resetting all three pieces, forming a pole that was as long as his body. He nodded. "It's still good."

"A bolo knife!" Roen shouted, yanking the sheathed weapon from off the wall. He unsheathed the blade and tested the sharp side with his finger. "All right, this will work for me!"

"Here we go," Felicity said, unrolling a throwing knives holder across the table. Daunte could see that the holder held ten knives, and Felicity quickly picked it up and strapped it to her waist.

"Daunte, find yourself a weapon quick!" Roen said, spinning his bolo knife in his hand.

It was easier said than done though for Daunte. He looked at the weapons around him, knowing he could choose just about anything.

But the tricky part was finding a weapon he could actually keep a grip on for a long period of time. He knew that with a spear or a sword, or even nunchaku like what Surya had would require a strong grip.

A grip he didn't have.

"Hey!" Surya suddenly shouted. He was ruffling through a garbage bin and pulled out a bundle of dark blue clothes tied up by a thick golden sash. "These are _my_ clothes!"

"The clothes you arrived in?" Roen asked. Surya didn't answer him, instead immediately pulling off his work shirt and revealing a broad but skinny torso. Felicity cried out in shock and adverted her gaze as he changed back into his clothes.

Daunte was still walking the perimeter of the room, trying to find a weapon he could properly use, when something caught his eye hanging from the wall.

A pair of _tekko_.

"Daunte, did you find something?" Felicity called over to him, her cheeks crimson with embarrassment.

Daunte pulled his work gloves back on and took the tekko off the wall. There was a wooden grooved bar that served as the grip, and steel that was about eight centimeters thick arched over the grip. He curled his hand into the grooves, feeling that he could get a comfortable grip on it. The tekko felt heavy in his palm though, and his arm dropped to his side. But his grip remained on the weapon and he felt a surge of hope.

 _I think I can use this._

"Are we ready?" Surya announced. He'd finished getting dressed. The dark blue fabric was in fact a tunic that reached his knees and his elbows. The thick gold sash was tied around his waist, and he wore white pants and black shoes. His outfit was such a stark contrast to the uniform he'd worn before, and the material looked expensive. Even if Daunte had doubted his claims about being part of Falena's Queen's Knights before, it was easy to see that Surya definitely came from a rich family.

"Let's go get Arin," Daunte said, readying his tekko. Roen looked like he wanted to see something about his weapon choice, but didn't. Armed with their newfound weapons, the group hurried from the room.

" _Hold it_!"

And ran into five armed guards. "Thieving heathens! We'll beat divine punishment into you, and then take the True Rune to the Matron!"

There was a certain power to being able to hold a weapon and defend yourself after three years of repeated abuse. Needless to say, it was incredibly satisfying for Daunte to finally have the means to fight against the people who had tormented him for so long, and caused so much needless misery and death. Not surprisingly Surya, Roen, and Felicity also fiercely fought back against the guards. Within a few short minutes they were either beaten unconscious or whimpering in pain on the ground.

"We're going to run into more of these guys so be careful," Surya warned. Sure enough, every so often they ran into smaller groups of two to three guards, ready to fight them. Fighting them wasted precious seconds getting to Arin, but Daunte was surprised to feel that there was some benefit to fighting the guards. More than getting revenge, he felt surer of himself wielding the tekko, and he felt his movements becoming smoother as he swung his fists at them.

They finally reached the infirmary, and Dr. Yulin was shocked to see them. "W-What's going on?!"

"The Matron found the True Rune on me," Daunte said. He hurried to Arin's bed. "We have to get out of here now. Arin, can you hear me? Can you wake up?"

"Daunte, even with the _Kindness Drops_ spell Arin is still not in well enough condition to be moved," Dr. Yulin warned. "His condition may only deteriorate."

"Dr. Yulin, we have no choice!" Felicity pleaded him. "The Matron will cut Daunte's hand off if she catches him! And then she'll probably kill both Daunte _and_ Arin when she gets the True Rune! We can't wait until Arin gets better, we have to get him out NOW or he'll be killed!"

Dr. Yulin looked between the four of them and sighed very slowly. He hurried to his medicine cabinet and pulled a satchel out from a drawer. "I'll give you guys some potions and antidotes. However my supplies are already limited, so I can't give you very much. But it should suffice at least getting out of here and getting across the Rocky Plains."

Daunte and Roen sat Arin up, and Roen helped prop the little boy against Daunte's back. Daunte hoisted up Arin in a piggyback carry. "Thank you for everything, Doctor."

"I don't deserve thanks. This small gesture is nothing compared to the atrocities that I allowed to happen here."

"But you've done more than anybody here!" Felicity insisted. "Do you know how many of us would've died if you hadn't come here? We're so grateful to you!"

"I don't deserve your praise." Dr. Yulin held the bag out to Surya. "But please stay alive, all of you."

"I will," Surya said, taking the bag. "I can't find my family if I'm dead."

"Can I leave too?" the little girl from earlier quipped up.

Daunte shook his head at her. "We're doing something very dangerous, and you'll be in greater danger than you are now if you come with us. But I'll be back to liberate this place. I promise." He didn't know where that thought came from, especially when he'd spent so much time focusing on his own survival and Arin's survival. But he also knew he was being sincere with the conviction.

 _It's not just me who deserves freedom. All of the other children here deserve it, and I will do my best to make that happen!_

The girl didn't look upset by the rejection. She smiled and nodded. "I trust you, Daunte. I know you'll come back for us."

"Now hurry before the soldiers find you," Dr. Yulin said. "If you're able to get up to the Upper Tier, there's a hidden lift you can ride to the surface. If not, there's an emergency passage on Tier Eight that the miners use to use. It'll take longer than on the Upper Tier, but it should lead you right to the entrance of _K'alak'i Patieba_."

K'alak'i Patieba was the town closest to the Dark Chasm. It had once been a town for the miners, but now it was a modest small town. Daunte nodded. "Thank you for everything, Doctor."

But Dr. Yulin waved a dismissive hand. "Don't thank me for acting like a human being."

* * *

Carrying Arin predictably made fighting difficult for Daunte. Not that the boy was heavy—he was so light in fact that Daunte felt uneasy carrying him. But it left his hands occupied.

Luckily Surya, Felicity, and Roen fought enough in his stead.

"Let's hope the mudslide is over," Roen said grimly as they ran back to the Chasm's shaft. They still heard rainfall, but it wasn't as severe as it had been earlier. They made it onto Tier Five and began running up towards the Upper Tier. The mudslide had thankfully ended, but it had reshaped the Tiers entirely all the way down to Tier Seven. Daunt saw below that some areas were hilly with wet mud.

 _I hope that secret room didn't get buried._

"Dammit!" Surya snapped suddenly. They had made it up to Tier Two slipping and sliding on the mud when they saw an advancing wall of at least a dozen charging towards them. And unlike the guards they had faced before, these guards wielded _swords_ instead of whips and batons.

"W-We have to go down!" Felicity sputtered.

Surya raised his hand. " _Fog of Deception._ "

Their collective surroundings began foggy once more. It was enough to distract the guards and they hurried back down the way they came. "W-What does this spell do?!" Roen wondered aloud. "I can barely see!"

"It increases our evasion rate temporarily by hiding us from enemies in a fog," Surya told him over his shoulder. "But that was the last one I had, so we have to make it count."

It did work for a short while. They managed to run back down Tiers Three, Four, and Five undetected. The fog dissipated on Tier Six, but they didn't stop. They had to get to Tier Eight to escape!

"Enough of this."

It was almost like a cruel joke. They _did_ manage to make it to Tier Eight. All the way down they saw no obstacles in their way except for the mud hills.

But suddenly, the Matron was standing in front of them. Dry, clean, and looking very irritated.

"Get out of our way," Surya said, whipping out his tri-nunchaku. "I don't usually attack ladies, but I _will_ strike you if you try to stop us."

"Did you think it would be this easy for you?" the Matron asked them. "Do you think I will allow you to leave?" she spread her arms out to them. "The only way out is through _me_ , children. You can fight on, or you can surrender before I _really_ get angry. The choice is yours."

Daunte swallowed thickly. They had the choice to fight or surrender. He didn't know what would happen if they fought her, but he had a feeling the horns on her hood weren't for show. But if they surrendered they would probably die.

So he shook his head, and carefully set Arin down on the ground. "We're leaving and you can't stop us."

"That's right!" Felicity said, pulling out some throwing knives.

"Y-Yeah!" Roen said more uncertainly.

The Matron sighed shortly. She clearly wasn't afraid of them. She actually looked _bored_ more than anything. "Have it your way, then."

Surya lunged at her, swinging his tri-nunchaku. But the Matron dodged the blow. No—she didn't simply dodge it. She carefully jumped back, her body moving in such a way as though she created a ripple in the air, as though she were underwater. Her feet settled delicately on the muddy ground, even as Surya charged at her again.

She gestured at him with her right hand, and it suddenly glowed. Blue lightning ruptured from her hand and struck Surya. The boy screamed in pain, his body wrecked with blue electric bolts, and he flew backwards. His body slammed into Daunte and the others, and they screamed and scrambled to remain steady on Tier Eight and not slip over the edge.

"Have you had enough?" the Matron asked. She didn't wait for a reply. Her hand glowed again, and Daunte immediately shoved Arin's body across the mud. Lightning bolts suddenly rained down upon all four of them, shocking them viciously and causing them all to shriek.

Somewhere in Daunte's mind, a strange thought surfaced. _A rune spell in rapid succession?! How is that possible?! Doesn't a rune need a short break between spells?!_

The Matron shocked them once more, leaving all four of them sizzling and twitching in pain in the mud. Daunte painfully reached for Arin, who had thankfully been spared from the spells. As he did though, he felt a sudden dip in the mud beneath him. His heart thudded. _What the—_

"I think that's enough," the Matron said plainly, lowering her hand. "Now, boy. Give me the True Rune, or I'll turn your friends into ash."

Daunte ignored her, his fingers briefly letting go of the tekko in his hand, to grab Arin's sleeve. He used what remained of his strength to drag his little brother closer to him, even as he felt the dipping sensation become broader and more widespread beneath him. He looked at the other to see if they could feel this strange sensation, but the other three looked too distracted by their own pain.

"No answer? Then let me answer for you." The Matron raised her hand once more. "Ashes it is."

Before she could call forth the spell, the source of the dipping that Daunte felt quickly revealed itself. Right before Daunte's eyes a _sinkhole_ suddenly opened underneath all five of them, and their bodies dropped into the darkness below.


	4. Chapter One: Part Four

I've released two more polls. But since my profile can only hold one poll at a time, I created a forum so that you can vote in any of my polls. Feel free to vote! forum/Suikoden-VI-Fanfiction-Polls/180690/

Part Four

 _He saw her. She seemed to be surrounded by a glowing light, but he knew it was her. He reached out a tiny hand and grabbed hold of her white robes._

" _Daunte."_

 _He tried to look up, but was unable to. But she bent down and picked him up in a tight hug. He buried her face into her neck. He could smell the perfume she always wore. It comforted him._

" _Daunte, I know things look bleak now," she told him, running her slender fingers through his hair. "But they_ _ **will**_ _get better. I promise."_

" _T…" the words were hard to form in his mouth. He gathered up the courage to say them. "I heard them. They said you were an h-heretic and a…traitor."_

" _I don't listen to gossip." She took a seat on the couch, still holding onto him. "And you shouldn't either. What I express in my preaching is free thought, Daunte. And the truth of our Scriptures. Not what has been currently mandated in our Doctrines."_

" _B-But why would they say such things about you?"_

" _Because that's what people have been told about me. And quite frankly, we Nagareans have become too complacent. People would rather just duck their heads and go with the flow instead of standing up for what is right. But I'm not going to do that, Daunte. I can't just stand back while the High Clerics just skim the Scriptures and make up laws as they see fit. Not while the people suffer."_

" _What will you do?"_

" _I will fight, Daunte." Her hand cupped his cheek and turned his face up towards her. But her face was still enveloped in light and he couldn't see her. "I will fight so that Arin and you don't have to grow up in an oppressive environment. I would do anything for you two."_

* * *

" _Kindness Drops_."

Daunte's brow twitched, and he suddenly became soaked. He also aware of the burning, agonizing pain in his right ankle, and he almost shouted in pain. But just as abruptly, the pain was gone and he dried. He coughed briefly, and slowly opened his eyes.

"Are you all right?"

Daunte sat up, blinking against the dim light around him. There was a weight on his chest, but he felt it slide down him as he sat up. Roen and Felicity were sitting side by side on the floor nearby, their expressions grim. "A-Are you guys okay?" Daunte choked on the words.

Felicity nodded. "I-It looks like we fell into the secret area."

"Arin!" Daunte suddenly shouted. He looked around himself until he focused on the weight that had settled in his lap. Arin lay sprawled against his lap, still unconscious. The boy was wet and muddy, and Daunte's heart thudded painfully. This physical condition wasn't going to help Arin's already delicate condition.

But the boy was breathing. It was weak, but it was a clear sound.

"We fell quite far and suffered serious injuries."

Daunte looked up. Surya was standing over him, holding a makeshift burning torch. "I broke my leg and collar bone. Your right ankle shattered upon impact, Daunte, and unfortunately Felicity suffered a fractured skull." Daunte looked at the girl in question with alarm, but Felicity looked perfectly fine. "Arin wasn't injured because you shielded him with your own body. But when I woke up after the fall, we all had broken bones. Luckily, my _Kindness Drops_ healed all our wounds."

Daunte looked up, expecting to see a hole in the ceiling from the sinkhole. Instead he saw a dark ceiling. "What—"

"We h-heard them mobilizing from the top of the hole," Roen said. He slowly stood up. "Surya healed me first because my only injury was a broken elbow. But we had to drag you guys as far as we could away from the sinkhole."

"The blood from our injuries attracted monsters, but luckily it was nothing too dangerous," Surya said. "Unfortunately, I had to use all four of my _Kindness Drops_ spells in order to save us, in addition to several of Dr. Yulin's potions. So until we find a safe place to rest, I won't be able to use them and we don't have as many healing supplies as we originally did."

"T-Thank you for saving us," Daunte said sincerely. He shifted Arin around to piggyback him again. Inwardly though, he was shocked that he suffered such a serious injury. Didn't Dr. Yulin say that True Rune users couldn't be injured easily?

 _Maybe it was because it wasn't a life-threatening injury? How does it actually work though, having a True Rune?_

Surya shrugged. "Don't mention it. But we can't rest right now. We need to put as much distance between the sinkhole and us as possible before stopping to rest. Are you guys all right to stand?"

"If it means getting out of here, I'll go as far as I need to," Felicity said. She quickly stood up, but then she suddenly stumbled.

"Be careful," Surya warned, helping to steady here. "I did what I could for your injury, but there might be some lingering injury."

"R-Right."

"I'm ready," Roen said, unsheathing his bolo knife as he stood.

"I think the wisest thing with the upcoming battles is if you three mobilize an attack unit together," Surya said, looking between them. "If the three of you are able to devise a united attack formation, it will allow you to deal more damage in a shorter period of time."

"What about you?" Roen asked.

"I'm a Knight," Surya reminded him. "I've been in a few battles. Outside of your quest to find that True Rune and against the guards, when was the last time you guys were involved in a battle?"

The three of them knew they couldn't answer that question because they'd been in the Dark Chasm for several years. Daunte sighed and looked at his two closest friends. "All right," he decided. "When we're not in battle, we can devise a proper unite attack for the three of us. After all, you two don't have runes and I have _no_ idea how to use my True Rune. So all we have right now is our physical strength—which as we all know is extremely lacking."

"Wait," Surya said suddenly. He fiddled around in the satchel Dr. Yulin had given him and pulled out a scroll. "Daunte, I saw this sticking out of your workbag when I casted _Fog of Deception_. This will help us significantly if we run into a nasty monster."

"We found that scroll in a treasure chest," Felicity said as Surya handed it to Daunte. "What is it?"

"It's a rune scroll. This scroll in particular casts the spell _Flaming Arrows_ , which is a very powerful fire spell. So hang onto it and don't use it unless we absolutely need to use it. It disintegrates after one use."

Daunte nodded and stashed the rune scroll in his waistband. "Let's get going."

* * *

The area of the ruins they had fallen into didn't look familiar to Daunte. Not that the previous area had many distinctive differences than this, but this area had more forks in the road, dead ends, and definitely more monsters. Even without his healing spells however, Surya was more than capable of handling the monsters. The tri-nunchaku he wielded looked very complex to use, and Daunte found himself wondering how the other teenager avoided whacking himself on the head whenever he swung it.

But since Surya proved very capable of handling the monsters on his own, it gave the others plenty of time to devise a proper unite attack that the three of them could utilize. Surya advised them to give their unite attack a name, so that whenever they felt they needed to use it in battle, one of them could just shout the name of the attack so that the others could fall into formation to use it without confusion. But he also advised them to come up with a name that wouldn't make their intentions obvious to enemies so that they wouldn't be struck down before executing the attack.

Ultimately, Felicity came up with a name they all could agree on. "Best Friends'?"

Daunte nodded. "It sounds harmless, and it's the truth."

"You guys aren't just my friends though," Roen said. He shuffled his feet and ducked his head. "You're my family. The only family I have left."

"Thank you, Roen," Felicity said, giving him a hug.

Having a proper unite attack did boost morale amongst them as they ventured further and further through the darkness. Surya's light, which he had somehow made with flints and tinder he had stashed, didn't show a lot of the ruins. And oftentimes they didn't see the enemies approaching until they were practically on top of them. They saw giant rats and ant armies again, but they also saw other weird monsters. Like sentient shields floating in mid-air, and decaying corpses that stumbled towards them.

But their 'Best Friends' unite attack _did_ work to pack a punch against large groups. Daunte and Roen would take the monsters off-guard by charging forward together and engaging up to two at a time with their tekko and bolo knife respectively, and Felicity would finish them off from a distance by throwing multiple knives.

After several hours of wandering, Surya directed them into a room. The room was completely empty, without any treasure chests. But Surya walked the perimeter of the room, examining every nook and cranny, before announcing, "Let's stop here and rest."

Felicity sighed in relief and slid down the blue-purple wall to the floor. "We've made so many twists and turns down here that if they _did_ come down here with dogs to find us, it'll take them a very long time to find us!"

"Exactly," Surya said. He sat down alongside another wall nearby. "Which is why I wanted to explore every room along the way."

Daunte slid off his tekko and propped Arin in his lap. "Do we have any more water?"

"Here." Surya dug through the satchel and tossed a canteen at Daunte. He dug into his pants pocket and pulled out a wad of paper. "I'm really surprised by the security of that hellhole. They confiscated my clothes but didn't go through my pockets!" he unwrapped the paper to reveal what looked like jerky. "Is anybody hungry?"

They all were, and Surya broke off pieces to give to each of them. It was the first time in forever since Daunte ate anything besides hard bread and porridge, and he felt his stomach cramp slightly as he scarfed the meager jerky down. But it didn't matter to him. "Are you hungry, Arin?" he held out a piece to his brother. Arin stirred briefly and he mumbled a little, but otherwise he didn't seem conscious enough to eat anything. Daunte knew he had to get food into his brother as soon as possible, or his condition would only deteriorate even further.

"Surya, you said something about looking for your family," Roen said suddenly. Like Daunte he had inhaled his jerky in three bites. "What exactly happened?"

"My cousins were kidnapped a couple of days ago," Surya said grimly. He looked down at his lap. "It's the craziest thing, too. I mean, not all of them were even in the same place and they all disappeared simultaneously! We found a mole amongst the guards at the palace, and he confessed that Nagarea was responsible for their kidnappings. I was with a group trying to cross the border to do reconnaissance, but I got captured as well."

"How many cousins do you have?" Daunte asked. Felicity immediately followed with, "What kind of people are they? Do you have any brothers and sisters?" And Roen added just as quickly, "You're part of the royal family, right? Are you next in line, or is it one of your cousins?"

"Why are you guys so interested in hearing about my family?" Surya asked them.

"Because _we_ don't have any families," Roen reminded him. "Except Daunte here, of course."

"Drink this slowly," Daunte told Arin, helping him to hold the canteen as he drank the water.

"…Fair enough," Surya said. He leaned against the mossy brick wall. "I'm the son of the Commander of the Queen's Knights. And you guys already know that _I'm_ a Queen's Knight as well, though I almost didn't get the spot. Mother and Father showed me no mercy with their training, but some people still think it was because of nepotism that I got in."

"We've seen you fight though," Felicity said. "And you're very capable. It's not surprising that you got elected to your Queen's Knights."

"Thanks." Surya bit down on a piece of jerky before he continued. "I'm an only child, but I have five cousins. I have two older cousins—Archana and Kaylani—from my great-aunt Haswar, and I have three younger cousins—Farrin, Freyr, and Signe—from my other aunt, Queen Lymsleia. Farrin's probably going to be the hardest for us to find because she's the heir to the throne. But I also think we have to worry _least_ about her safety because I'm sure your government sees the most value in her."

"What are your cousins like?" Felicity asked again.

"Well, Archana is really quiet and keeps to herself, but she wasn't always like that. In fact, she used to have a very, uh, eccentric personality. That all changed when her husband died though."

" _Died_?!" Roen exclaimed.

"That's awful!" Felicity gasped. "How did he die?!"

"Poisoning," Surya said solemnly. "Right in the middle of their wedding reception. The wedding cake was somehow poisoned—we _still_ haven't figured out how, considering we had food tasters checking the food and nobody found anything wrong with the cake before they brought it out—but since Archana and her husband ate the cake before the guests they were the only ones poisoned. She survived the poisoning…but he didn't."

"Oh no…" Felicity's fingers were curled into her cheeks.

"Archana and her husband were childhood friends and she had always loved him, so she decided to observe the traditional mourning period of seven years," Surya continued. "So she hasn't remarried and she hasn't worn anything but her mourning clothes since then."

"Gosh, that's pretty tragic," Roen said. "Before I was convicted, one of my neighbor's husband died and she remarried within three months! But to mourn for seven years?! That's incredible!"

"It's almost the seven-year anniversary of his death," Surya said. He motioned to Daunte to throw the canteen back to him, and Daunte complied. "So Archana's official mourning period is almost over. Unfortunately, because of this men from all over the country—and even from abroad—have been readying themselves to try and start courting her the minute she's absolved from her duty. In fact, a whole bunch of them volunteered for this rescue mission just to impress her. Never mind the fact that most of them didn't have _any_ form of combat training. But I digress."

Surya took a sip of water before continuing. "Kaylani…is exactly like my great-aunt." He laughed a little. "She loves cute things and loves giving hugs. Even before she got married she collected teddy bears. Even the stuff I grew out of. She was chosen to be Falena's ambassador to the Toran Republic, and that's where she met her husband."

"I-Is _her_ husband still alive?" Felicity asked fearfully.

"Yes. He's a very capable fighter and was part of the rescue mission before I got separated from them. But…" Surya's expression strained a little. "We…we're on a time constraint with finding Kaylani. We need to find her _fast_."

"Why? What's wrong with her?" Roen asked.

"She's pregnant," Surya said. "In fact, she's due any day now. So we need to find her before she gives birth to her baby, otherwise they're bound to separate the two and it will be _very_ hard to find a newborn infant."

"B-But our government wouldn't harm a baby!" Roen insisted. "And they surely wouldn't separate a baby from its mother! Am I right, Daunte?"

Daunte looked at his friend. He knew he had the option to either agree with Roen's assertion or to disagree. When he looked down at Arin, and saw how his little brother was still struggling for breath, he knew what his answer should be.

"…Roen," Daunte said slowly. " _We_ were separated from our parents. The Theocracy would surely separate Surya's cousin and her baby."

"But we were criminals!" Roen insisted. "Kaylani and her baby are royalty!"

"Roen, stop calling us criminals!" Felicity shouted with frustration. "We did _nothing_ wrong! Even if we go by the logic of Original Sin, did Kass deserve to die?! Does Arin deserve to be as sick as he is?! Will you still defend our government, even after knowing they sentenced us to this hellhole NOT to redeem us, but to **use** us as free labor to hunt for a True Rune?! Because they were so _sure_ a True Rune wouldn't select a child?!"

"That doesn't change a fact that our Holy Doctrine has deemed us criminals!" Roen insisted. "This is what the _Scriptures_ says is true! We may have been sentenced for sinister intentions, but we still broke the holy law! That's completely undeniable!"

A long period of silence followed his outburst. Daunte wanted desperately to correct him and tell him that Original Sin itself was a giant lie, but he knew that would lead to just another argument. He looked at Surya. "What about your other cousins?"

Surya laughed, and the tension in the air dissipated almost immediately. "Ah, my younger cousins. Farrin and Freyr are fraternal twins. Farrin's going to be the next Queen of Falena, and Freyr's been focusing all of his energy on training to join the Queen's Knights. It's always been a longstanding tradition that the Queen's husband would become Commander of the Queen's Knights, but Aunt Lym broke tradition and changed the rules so that the Queen could elected whom she felt was most _qualified_ for the job. That's why her brother—my father—is the current Commander. I think that Freyr is training so that Farrin chooses _him_ to be her Commander when she becomes Queen."

"So you're not in the running to become the next Commander?" Roen asked.

Surya shrugged. "I probably am. It's the Queen's decision, not the knights, of who becomes Lord Commander. But I'm happy defending my family and country with the position I have now. I don't need commandership to validate myself. But becoming Commander is Freyr's ultimate goal, so I don't want to infringe on that."

Daunte looked at him. He wasn't sure if he should commend Surya for allowing his younger cousin to pursue his dream, or to reprimand him for essentially handing the job to Freyr. But then he looked at Arin, who was still very pale and sweaty, and he remembered how he had wanted to get the True Rune to select Arin to save him. Even though the True Rune chose Daunte instead, ultimately he'd wanted Arin to have the power.

So he said to Surya, "That's very nice of you."

"I agree," Felicity said. "You're very skilled in combat, but despite this you don't want to ruin your cousin's dream. It's very admirable."

"Thanks, I guess. I wouldn't be surprised if Freyr gave his captors a hell of a hard time. Farrin and Signe though…will be harder to pin down. Although, Farrin's a lot like her brother in that she doesn't give in to pressure or dire situations. So she'll probably also give her captors a hard time as well. Signe's much younger than them, and she's very quiet and likes to keep to herself. She'll probably just go with the flow and do whatever her captors want in order to not cause trouble for herself."

"They probably took Far—excuse me, Princess Farrin, to the capital," Felicity said. "Mlkwt Alsmwat is at the top of Winter Hill, and what remains of the Golden River deposits on the opposite side of Winter Hill."

"Golden River," Surya echoed. "Do you mean the Feitas River?"

"No, Golden River," Felicity said, frowning. "It originally flowed from the northeast, but three-quarters of the river dried up after the Great Earthquake."

"That sounds like the Fei—never mind." Surya waved a hand. "So Farrin may be in…Mlkwt Alsmwat, you called it? How are the defenses of the city?"

"It's impossible to lay siege to the city," Daunte said. "There's a steep drop into Golden River from one end, and Winter Hill is at the other. Winter Hill is a pretty confusing roadless landscape of steep hills, plateaus, and no noticeable landmarks. Unless you've been to Mlkwt Alsmwat before, you'll get lost without a guide. Or a horse who knows the way."

"So in other words, the capital is the perfect place to bring _all_ of my cousins to." Surya scrubbed a hand over his face. "Have any of you been to Mlkwt Alsmwat before?"

"No," Roen said.

"I was born there, but I haven't been back there in about ten years," Daunte said.

"My father use to make business trips to Mlkwt Alsmwat, but he only ever took me into Winter Hill," Felicity said. "Winter Hill is a beautiful area. Granted it's full of monsters, but it's not nearly as populated with monsters as the rest of the country is. People have been known to go on picnics and family camping trips in Winter Hill."

"So I have no way of getting into the capital unless I find someone who can take me." Surya slapped both hands over his face and his body sank further into the floor. "This is a nightmare…"

Daunte swallowed thickly and looked at the others. Roen and Felicity's expressions were equally distressed. It was an uncomfortable feeling to know that despite the fact that Surya had helped them significantly in their escape, they were virtually no help to him in finding his family.

 _We can only hope that they weren't taken to Mlkwt Alsmwat._

"Surya," Daunte said. The boy didn't move. "I…don't necessarily think that they were all taken there."

Surya lowered his hands and looked at Daunte. Daunte shrugged stiffly and floundered on his hands. "I-I think that the High Clerics' strategy would be to separate everyone. Right? I-I mean, if they meant to keep you all together, then they would've taken _you_ to the capital along with everybody else. Instead, they sent you here. Why would they send you here if you're just as valuable as a hostage as everybody else?"

"Hey, Daunte has a point," Roen quipped up. "Whatever reason your family was kidnapped, would it really make sense to keep them all in the same city? Having them all stick together would just increase their morale, wouldn't it? And it would give the Faleneans less of a chase when they would know where they all are."

"That actually does sound better than rounding them all up at Mlkwt Alsmwat," Felicity agreed. Her face brightened a little again and her usual smile resurfaced. "So…maybe they were sent to different cities across Nagarea?"

"Farrin may still have been sent to Mlkwt Alsmwat," Daunte said, looking back at Surya. "Or maybe she wasn't. We don't know anything yet so we can't jump to conclusions yet."

Surya slowly relaxed and set his hands in his lap. After a moment, he straightened back up. "Thank you," he said. He nodded and managed a smile. "I came here to do reconnaissance. So I might as well visit as many cities as I can to find clues as to where they are."

It was really the only thing he could do at this point. Daunte looked down at Arin again and wondered what _he_ could do at this point.

 _I promised Surya I would help him find his family when he helped take care of Arin. But Arin is still ill and I need to continue taking care of him. I want to keep my promise, but my family comes first._

He shook his head. _I'm getting too ahead of myself. First things first, we need to get out of here and get as far away from the Dark Chasm as possible._ _ **Then**_ _I'll worry about how I'll keep my promise to Surya._

* * *

They each got as much rest as they could, taking turns keeping watch for the guards that were hunting them. At one point Roen shook them all awake in a panic. They listened carefully, and to their dread they heard the muddled sound of voices. It was quite a distance down the corridor, but it was too close for their liking. They immediately mobilized and took off running, not even stopping to engage in a random battle. During the course of their running, the True Rune on Daunte's hand began glowing again, responding once again to his panic. The glow provided more efficient light for them to see where they were going, but Daunte prayed that it didn't draw unwanted attention towards them.

They didn't stop until all they heard around them was silence, and their own heavy breathing. After that, sleep was near impossible. Luckily, Surya rested enough to restore the spells on his Water Rune, and Daunte's rune stopped glowing. After taking a few potions, Felicity's head injury was nonexistent, but their supplies became dangerously low. After they decided to move on, they kept their eyes open for an exit, but also for more treasure chests. Unfortunately the hallway in front of them kept winding and winding, not revealing any new rooms.

But…more than the lack of new rooms, something more unsettling became apparent to them.

"We haven't run into any monsters for a while," Roen said softly.

"Maybe they all went to the people chasing us?" Felicity said hopefully.

Surya suddenly stopped, signaling to them with his tri-nunchaku. "Something's coming."

"W-What?" Roen sputtered, but Daunte saw it. In the darkness ahead of them, he saw a silhouette shifting around.

A _giant_ silhouette.

Daunte slid Arin off his back and carefully propped his brother up against the wall in a sitting position. Then he raised his tekko and stepped forward to stand beside Surya. Roen rushed forward to stand at Daunte's other side, and Felicity took position behind Daunte. "What are our chances?" he asked Surya quietly.

"I only have two spells on my Water Rune, and they're defensive spells," Surya said. "You still have the rune scroll, right?"

"Right."

"We have no choice but to fight. Whatever this thing is, it's big enough to block off the passage. If we turn around, we'll get captured." Surya took a fighting stance. "So we have to win this."

Daunte nodded and raised his fists, but his heart was pounding in his throat. This was so much bigger than the fights they had with the guards and with the monsters down there. Surya himself was apprehensive, and his lack of confidence made Daunte very uneasy. If a _Knight_ was unsure of an upcoming battle, how in the hell was HE supposed to win?!

The True Rune glowed once more, revealing the monster before them.

Daunte's jaw dropped. It was a grotesque, giant golden humanoid creature sitting in midair with its legs crossed and its arms folded over its chest. His arms were covered in black tattoos, and there was a white oval jewel in the center of its forehead. It wore a fierce expression on its ugly face, which didn't falter when it saw the teenagers before it.

"W…What is that thing?" Felicity breathed.

"It looks like a _Bronze Sun_ ," Surya said.

The monster unfolded one of its arms and pointed to them. "SCATTER!" Surya shrieked. They barely ducked out of the way in time as fire shot down inexplicably from the ceiling and rained down upon them.

Particularly, upon Daunte. Daunte's vision filled with orange and red before his body exploded in pain. He couldn't think past the all-encompassing pain, and the heat that engulfed him. He was on fire. He was _on fire_!

" _Kindness Drops_!"

The heat was abruptly gone, and the pain soon after as the familiar raindrops soaked Daunte to the bone. He lay there in a stupor for a second, his head spinning from the sudden shift from heat to cold, when he heard Roen cry out. The other teenager jumped over Daunte's body and raced at the Bronze Sun. He swung the bolo knife down and made a diagonal cut across the monster's golden torso.

But the Bronze Sun didn't flinch. He didn't even bleed from his wound. He likewise didn't react when Felicity's throwing knife slammed into his forehead. He simply reached up and yanked the weapon out of his head.

Daunte scrambled to his feet and Roen ran back so they could get back into formation. He spared a glance over his shoulder at Arin, and the boy thankfully wasn't injured and hadn't stirred from the commotion.

He turned back around in time for the Bronze Sun to point once again, and for fire to rain down upon them. This time though, the fire struck Surya. The boy didn't shout in pain, but he cursed violently as he struggled to put the flames out.

" _Best Friends_!" Felicity shouted. Daunte snapped to attention and lined up with Roen and Felicity for their unite attack. They did as they practiced—Roen and Daunte charging simultaneously at the enemy. With one enemy to deal with, they struck the Bronze Sun in rapid succession. Daunte threw as many punches as he could, but the sick feeling in his gut didn't go away. He was hitting the Bronze Sun as hard as he could, but the monster wasn't even _bruising_ under the blows from his _tekko_.

Felicity threw her knives to finish the attack, but the Bronze Sun didn't even looked fazed. _A-Are we completely out of our league?!_ Daunte thought incredulously. _Or maybe—maybe we're just not physically strong enough for such a battle after years of mistreatment and malnourishment!_

They fought with all their might, but nothing they did fazed the monster before them. Surya had used up all his _Kindness Drops_ after only a couple rounds, and was left casting _Fog of Deception_ whenever he wasn't attacking. Daunte and the others kept up with their unite attack, but no matter how hard they struck the Bronze Sun the monster wouldn't go down. It wasn't long before they could no longer _use_ their unite attack because all of Felicity's knives were sticking out of its body.

And it was still relentlessly attacking.

Daunte dropped down to one knee, and he felt something pressing against his stomach. He looked down and saw the rune scroll. By a stroke of good luck the scroll didn't catch fire all the times the Bronze Sun attacked him. Now the scroll was their only chance!

He stood back up, and tossed out the scroll so it quickly unrolled at the Bronze Sun. " _Flaming Arrows_!" he shouted.

Slender rays of fire exploded from the scroll and flew at the Bronze Sun. Daunte felt a surge of hope as the Bronze Sun finally reacted with visible pain at the spell striking it. Its body tilted back, as though it might lose its back in the air, as the fire arrows scorched its skin. Daunte felt the rune scroll turn to ashes in his hands, but he focused his attention on his enemy. _Please go down! Please go down!_

The spell finished, and the Bronze Sun looked dazed. But the dread returned to Daunte as the monster calmly shook off the effects of the spell and turned angry eyes towards him.

 _Oh sh—_

Not even five minutes later, the four teenagers were unable to stand. All of them were heaving for breaths, and all of them were injured. "D…Daunte," Surya gasped. He didn't have the energy to lift his head. "Do you r-really not know how to use the True Rune?"

Daunte's chest tightened, and he looked down at his right hand. Despite the overwhelming hopelessness of his situation, the True Rune had stopped glowing when the battle started. And despite the fact that his life was very obviously in danger, the True Rune wasn't coming to his aid. He knew nothing about it, what sort of spells it could cast, but the Rune had had enough presence of mind to choose _him_.

Yet it was doing nothing to save his life.

 _Dr. Yulin said that True Rune possessors can still die. Is…Is this True Rune going to let_ _ **me**_ _die?!_

He glared at his hand. "If you're going to let me die so easily, why did you even _choose_ me?!" despite his anger, he didn't have the energy to shout.

The Bronze Sun raised its hand again, but this time the finger extended higher. It was almost pointing towards the ceiling. Still breathing heavily, Daunte was wondering what it was doing until he saw a red-orange glow behind him and horror filled his body.

The monster directed a spell at _Arin_!

"NO!" Daunte shouted. He scrambled across the floor with an energy he didn't know he still had, and flew at his brother. Arin was still unconscious, completely oblivious to the threat to his life. Still screaming, Daunte slammed his body over Arin, shielding it from the onslaught that rained down upon them.

"Daunte!" Roen shrieked.

Black patches filled Daunte's vision and he screamed in pain. The spell—the spell was too much for his already battered body. He would surely die when it was over. What would happen to Arin if he died?

 _But if I die, maybe the True Rune will go to Arin. And maybe he'll finally get bet—_

His right hand suddenly exploded in green-yellow light. All at once the flames engulfing Daunte's back disappeared, and the pain in his body abruptly faded. He could even feel his strength returning to him as he gaped at the True Rune on his hand.

Then, he heard a whisper in his ears. It was an unfamiliar voice though, and it was impossible to tell if the voice was male or female. _"Howl."_

Daunte blinked, the Rune still glowing on his hand. _Howl? What does that mean?_

The Bronze Sun was slowly advancing upon them, but his hand was still glowing. Daunte looked at the Rune, and then at his friends. "…Howl?"

Nothing happened, and the monster was still coming. But the Rune was still glowing on Daunte's hand. He didn't recognize the voice that had said that single word, but maybe—

 _Was it the_ _ **Rune**_ _that spoke to me?_

Out of options, Daunte carefully lay Arin down and thrust his right hand into the air. " _HOWL_!" he shouted.

The True Rune's symbol floated into the air as the others turned at his shout. Green-yellow light suddenly enveloped all five of them, and Daunte felt warmth in his body. It was a comforting feeling.

Just as quickly though, the light was gone. But suddenly they were all on their feet. "W-We're healed!" Felicity cried out. She looked at Daunte. "Daunte, you healed us!"

"M-My spells are restored!" Surya cried out in astonishment. He quickly raised his hand. " _Fog of Deception_!"

Daunte wanted to check on Arin, but he knew they had to get rid of the Bronze Sun first. With their restored strength and spells, the battle still waged on for a significant amount of time. But they were now on the offensive as the Bronze Sun became more and more battered. It began dipping to one side as it tried to remain steady. But the four kept striking and striking at the Bronze Sun until finally the monster let out a final roar and fell out of the air, its large body making a deafening 'thud' on the ground.

Surya sighed heavily, falling backwards onto his backside. "That…was awful."

"But we won," Felicity said, smiling broadly. She hurried to collect her throwing knives. "We triumphed over it."

"Daunte, you used the True Rune!" Roen shouted, turning to the boy in question. "How did you know how to use it?!"

Daunte shook his head. "I didn't. I just suddenly heard a voice whisper to me. It must've been the Rune telling me the spell to cast." He heard heavy coughing behind him and he rushed back over to Arin. Arin had started coughing up more black stuff from his lungs, but it was in lesser quantity than it had been when Surya had casted _Kindness Drops_.

And his eyes were open.

"Arin?" Daunte lifted his little brother into his lap, patting his back to help him cough. "Arin, how do you feel?"

Arin finished coughing but his body slouched over, as though he didn't have the strength to sit back up. Daunte propped him up, and he caught his breath as the boy's dark silver eyes caught his. "B…Brother?" Arin's voice was very weak, barely above a whisper. He glanced briefly around their dark surroundings. "W…Where are we?"

"We escaped the Dark Chasm, Arin," Daunte told him. "We're going to get you out and get you to a doctor. You'll be better in no time."

Arin blinked very slowly. It was hard to read his expression in the dim passage. "W…We made it out? We really made it out?"

"Yes. You, I, Roen, and Felicity made it out."

Arin's brow knitted slightly. "W-What about Kass?"

Daunte's chest twisted painfully and he had to close his eyes. "Try to get some rest, Arin. We're almost out." He couldn't tell Arin yet that Kass was dead. The boy would no doubt be devastated. Such terrible news would have to wait until he got better.

 _And I don't know if I have the strength yet to put it into words._

Luckily, Arin didn't notice the obvious change of subject. His eyes slid closed and he was asleep once more.

"Who's Kass?" Surya asked them, standing up.

"He was one of our best friends," Felicity said. She looked down towards the ground. "He died a few days ago."

Surya looked stunned at this news, and he looked at all three of them. "I-I'm sorry for your loss," he said sincerely.

"Thanks," Roen said. His tone had gone quiet.

Daunte lifted Arin in a piggyback again. "We should get going. Hopefully this monster was blocking the exit."

"Right," Surya said, nodding.

The Bronze Sun had sprawled in such a way that it blocked off most of the hallway. The teenagers had to practically climbed over it body to get past it. They had a glimmer of hope that if the guards got as far as they did, that the body would stall them long enough for them to get as far away as possible. They encountered no other monsters in the hallway, but they kept on their guard. The exit had to be near! It just _had_ to be!

But…they got their answer after twenty minutes of walking.

"A _dead end_?!" Roen shouted. He slammed his hands into the brick wall in front of them. "No! This can't be happening!"

"Can we double back?" Felicity asked, looking between Daunte and Surya.

"We….probably have no choice," Surya said grimly, smoothing his hand over the wall. "If we go back though, we'll probably run into the search party after us."

"But if we stay here, we'll get cornered."

Daunte bit down hard on his lower lip. Why had they fought that Bronze Sun, anyway?! They almost died, and it was guarding a damn _dead end_! Snarling in fury, he stormed forward and slammed the bottom of his foot into the brick wall in a frustrated kick.

The brick he kicked though suddenly sank into the wall. "Guys!" he shouted in relief.

"Oh!" Felicity exclaimed, turning back around. "This is just like the room leading to the True Rune!"

"Thank Nagar," Roen said, pressing a hand to his chest.

The wall rumbled as the other one did, but it didn't sink into the floor this time. Instead, it moved to the right, sinking into the wall. It revealed a large room, and right in front of the door was a large chair, almost like a throne.

More importantly, the room was partially lit by _natural light._

Surya entered the room first, and Daunte followed. As he walked alongside the chair, he let his right hand trail alongside the chair's arm. But very abruptly, the True Rune activated, and the room filled with green-yellow blinked. Daunte squeezed his eyes shut. _W-What's going on?_

Suddenly, the room filled with angry voices. Daunte opened his eyes to see that his right hand was no longer resting on the chair's arm. It was resting on a _human_ arm!

He jerked his hand back, but stilled as he took in the rest of the room. The room was brightly lit and richly dressed in expensive tapestries and gold. There were at least a dozen men in the room arguing, but he couldn't understand the language they were speaking.

And the clothes they were. They were definitely _not_ Nagarean-style clothes.

Daunte heard a powerful voice shout behind him, and everyone else in the room fell silent. He turned to the person sitting on the throne. It was a middle-aged man, who was visibly younger than many of the other men in the room. He spoke to the arguing men in the unknown language, but his voice was crisp and authoritative. He was dressed no differently than the other men, but…his forehead. There was a symbol right in the center of his forehead, though it was hard to tell the exact shape with the headdress the man wore. But it was easy enough to guess what it was.

 _It's a rune._

Curious against his will, Daunte leaned forward to get a good look at the rune. The man couldn't see him, and his pale eyes kept darting around the room at the other people standing in it. The shape of the rune seemed like—

A hand caught his shoulder. "Daunte?"

Daunte blinked. Just as suddenly, the vision was gone. The room was dark and empty again, and the chair was empty before him. He looked over his shoulder and saw Surya. "Daunte, are you okay? You were acting weird for a second there."

"Wh…" Daunte looked at him, and then looked at Roen and Felicity. "D-Did you guys see that?"

"See what?" Roen asked.

"T-The people," Daunte said. "There were people arguing in here, and there was a man sitting in this chair!"

"People?" Felicity asked. She frowned. "There's nobody in here but us."

Daunte was confused. Had he hallucinated the whole experience? But it had felt so real!

"The Rune on your hand glowed before you started acting weird," Surya pointed out. "Maybe the True Rune showed you a vision of the past?"

"Vision of the past?" Daunte wondered aloud.

"Well, these look like ruins from the Sindar race." Surya pointed to the cursive unknown writing on the wall. "I've seen the language before, and this looks similar to the Sindarian language."

"Do you know what it says?" Felicity asked excitedly.

Surya shook his head. "I'm nowhere near fluent in it. But from what I've heard, they've been finding Sindar ruins in countries all over the world. They were a highly advanced civilization, even more advanced than our modern societies. There's quite a few Sindar ruins in Falena. It's not that surprising that there would be some here, too."

"The man I saw here," Daunte said, gesturing to the chair. "H-He had a peculiar rune on his forehead."

Surya's eyes widened. "Y-You saw the _Sindar Chieftain_?! That's incredible!"

"Sindar Chieftain?" Felicity said.

"The Leader of the Sindar. It's been said that he was cursed with a True Rune, the Rune of Change. Nobody has a clue what this Rune's power is, but it's been theorized that it promotes constant change in the universe. Because of this, the Sindar race was doomed to wander the world, as the Rune of Change kept forcing them on the path of change. This is why there's Sindar ruins all over the world. This place was probably their home while they were in Nagarea. All the rooms and passageways we saw before were most likely rooms for the Sindar people, and the confusing layout was probably a way to lose invaders if they ever had to escape."

"That's great and all, but we really need to get out of here," Roen said. He pointed to an open corridor in front of the throne. "Let's just hope that leads outside."

"Right," Daunte said. He shook off the vision he'd seen and hoisted Arin higher onto his back. As a precaution he went back to the passage they came in and carefully listened. He heard nothing but silence.

 _Let's hope it remains that way._

* * *

The hallway leading out of the throne room was filled with natural light. Daunte's heart began pounding with anticipation. They were close, so very close! _Please let this not be a cruel joke_!

Then they saw light at the end of the hallway. Roen and Felicity shouted and took off running towards the exit. Daunte followed suit, and Arin bobbed around against his back. He hoped and prayed that there wasn't an ambush waiting for them right outside!

Daunte followed his friends outside, and stopped in his tracks. There was thankfully no guards waiting to ambush them outside. The Rocky Plains were empty and open before them. Daunte quickly turned around and looked up. He didn't expect to see a palace, but he was still surprised to see nothing but a rocky steep hill above him.

 _The palace must have been buried somehow. But I wonder how the monsters got in there? There must be more than one exit to this place._

Daunte slowly turned back around to observe their surroundings. He could still smell rain in the air, and the soil of the Rocky Plains still looked wet from rainfall, but the morning sky was more or less clear. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. The clean air was so refreshing.

Felicity sniffled, and knelt down to bury her fingers in the soft soil. "W-We're free." She looked up at her friends. "We're really free, aren't we? I-I haven't seen anything outside the Dark Chasm in four years!"

"I-I almost feel agoraphobic out here!" Roen exclaimed. He laughed, but teardrops leaked down his cheeks. "Can you believe this, Daunte? W-We really made it out of there!"

Daunte nodded, and knelt down so that he could check on Arin. His little brother was still asleep, but outside of a few brief coughs he could already hear the boy's breathing clear up. It was amazing what a sudden change of environment could do for the human body.

 _I've made it this far. Now I need to get him somewhere safe._

Surya reached into his pocket and pulled out what looked like a compass. He looked at it for a few moments before he said, "Okay, so you said we were on the southeastern coast of Nagarea, right Daunte?"

"Right," Daunte confirmed, offering Arin more water.

"Okay, so the Nagarean-Falenean border would then be to the northeast of us." He turned his body around in different directions, still looking at the compass, before he pointed. " _That_ way."

"I think _Baltas_ is the town closest to the border," Roen said. "But shouldn't we go to K'alak'i Patieba first?"

"That's the closest town to us right now, but that's also the first place they'll look for us!" Felicity said.

"It would be dangerous to go to K'alak'i Patieba, but unfortunately we'll need to rest," Surya said. He looked at the four of them before he said, "I also don't think it's a good idea for you guys to travel in your prison uniforms."

"…Right," Felicity admitted reluctantly, plucking at her own shirt. She looked at Daunte. "What do you think? Should we stop at K'alak'i Patieba, or go straight for Baltas?"

Daunte knew that it was incredibly risky to go straight to K'alak'i Patieba, but he also knew that they couldn't possibly make it all the way to Baltas in their current condition. Especially with Arin still incapacitated. So he said, "Let's go to K'alak'i Patieba."

"All right," Surya said. He reached into a back pocket and pulled out a small coin purse. "I have 1,000 potch on me, which should hopefully be enough to get us a room at the inn and some new clothes."

"What's potch?" Roen asked him.

"You know, potch," Surya said. He poured a couple of golden coins out of his coin purse and showed them to them. "The universal currency. Wh—" he suddenly froze. "Wait. You guys don't use potch in Nagarea?"

"Our currency is _bits_ ," Felicity said. "I've never heard of potch before."

Surya groaned, and shoved the coins back into the coin purse. "I should've known! An isolated country like Nagarea is _bound_ to have their own currency! None of the monsters we encountered dropped any money, so I didn't think—" He shook his head. "Okay. We'll need to get into some random battles in order to get some money."

"It's not really surprising that the monsters in _there_ didn't have bits," Daunte said, gesturing behind them. "Because they probably don't interact much with people. But the monsters of the Rocky Plains constantly attack travelers and such, so they probably do have money."

"Well, until I actually meet someone who can convert my potch, we'll need to get into some fights." Surya looked exasperated, but he pulled his tri-nunchaku out of its holder. "Are you guys ready?"

"If fighting means I can sleep in an actual bed and change clothes, I'll kill as many monsters as I can," Felicity said, standing up.

"Let's just hope it doesn't draw attention towards us," Roen said, also standing up.

Daunte hoisted Arin up, but he wasn't worried about what lay ahead. He felt Arin's breath on the crook of his neck, and the breathing was becoming clearer and clearer. He was already getting better outside of that hellhole.

 _We really made it out._

* * *

She felt the twitch in her hand again. _That's it. He's used the True Rune._

But she ignored it for the time being. She folded her arms over her chest as she regarded the man kneeling on the ground bound before her. "You can't deny it. I know you helped the children in their escape."

"I deny nothing, Lady Matron." Dr. Yulin glared at her defiantly. "I most certainly helped them escape."

"Why would you allow sinful criminals to escape their divine punishment?"

"Why would you allow _innocent children_ to be so horrifically abused and starved and worked to death?" Dr. Yulin countered. "All because of a _True Rune_?!"

She didn't falter under the venom in his voice and words. "Do you have any idea how much Nagarea would benefit from controlling a True Rune? Can you conceive of the _good_ we can do for this country with such power? But of course you can't. That's why you aided and abetted the escape of a heathen who _stole_ the True Rune."

Dr. Yulin's glare deepened. "If the Nagarist Order needs to sacrifice children in order to obtain such power, then they don't deserve to have it."

Her gaze left Dr. Yulin and focused on a guard nearby. "Give him twenty lashes for his insubordination. Send out a call for the heathens. Gather them in the dining hall and perform his punishment there." A thought came to her. "Speaking of the dining hall, I've decided that the children no longer need bread with their morning and evening meals. The porridge they receive should more than suffice for their daily diet."

"Please don't punish the children for what I did!" Dr. Yulin shouted. He tried to stand up, but a guard caught his shoulders and shoved him back down. "They're malnourished enough as it is! And you _can't_ keep doing this to them here, Lady Matron! I know that the High Clerics reopened this place to find the True Rune, and it's been found! There's absolutely no reason for the children to be kept here and worked to death!"

"You misunderstand, Doctor," the Matron told him. "This place is a labor camp for criminals. All of the children here are criminals, so they need to work off their sentences to receive penance."

"But you don't give a damn about their penance!" Dr. Yulin was dragged from the room before he could say anything more.

"Make sure he's punished accordingly, but don't kill him," she warned the guards. "There's no better surgeon in Nagarea than him, so he's still useful to us."

"The search party hasn't returned yet," the guard said. "The children wouldn't have the strength to kill the guards, but if there's any monsters lurking around down there they may have been ambushed."

"The boy activated the True Rune," the Matron said. "So there is little chance of them catching the children anyways."

"The children will most likely head to K'alak'i Patieba first," a lower Cleric reported to her. " _If_ they survived their fall into that sinkhole."

"They most certainly did," she responded. She walked around her desk and sat down. "And if not all of them, then that boy did. I will be gone for a few days. I received notice from the Grand Citadel that they have an emergency assignment for me. While I'm gone, continue enforcing the rules here. And make sure that the surrounding area and K'alak'i Patieba are thoroughly checked for the heathens."

"Yes, Lady Matron." The lower Cleric bent his head.

 _That boy must think he's smarter than me just because he temporarily slipped through my fingers. But I_ _ **will**_ _get that True Rune he has, no matter what._

* * *

As was ordered, Dr. Yulin was taken to the dining hall and whipped twenty times in front of all the children. He showed his defiance by not shouting out in pain, but seeing their beloved doctor so brutalized was traumatizing for the children.

And their moods soured even more with the announcement that they would no longer receive bread with their meals. And though the guards didn't say why, they knew enough why they being punished in such a way.

"Daunte—"

"He had the True Rune!"

"He ran away and left us all here!"

"But I heard. Nari was at the infirmary when he got Arin. Daunte promised to come back for all of us!"

"Would he really come back for _all_ of us?!"

"Daunte never makes a promise he can't keep!"

"He'll definitely come back for us!"

That promise alone would serve as great comfort for the children of the Dark Chasm in the grueling weeks to come.

* * *

(?) True Rune

 **Level 1: Howl – Restores Half HP/1 MP Spell**


	5. Chapter One: Part Five

When deciding on the casual clothing of Nagareans who were not Clerics, I drew inspiration from Eastern medieval styles from Persia and India.

Also, it was brought to my attention that only registered users of this website could vote in the polls here. If you would like to vote for any of my polls and don't have an account, feel free to write your vote in a review here or send me a PM and I will count it towards the poll results.

Part Five

K'alak'i Patieba. A town with a population of roughly two thousand people. They were just outside of town, but Daunte could hear the bustle and excited chatter of the citizens. While many people were discussing their day, the Nagarean religion was a popular topic of conversation. Bitterness rose in him briefly, wondering how the people of the town could carry on with their lives while children suffered under a misguided Decree just sixteen kilometers away.

 _Ultimately though, what could these people do? Would they ever have the strength to rise up and take a stand? It probably wouldn't stop the Theocracy from sentencing_ _ **them**_ _under Original Sin, would it?_

"Okay," Surya said quietly. He knelt down on the ground. "Let's empty our pockets and find out how much money we made from the battles. We also have a couple things we can trade in for extra cash at trade post, if necessary."

Daunte carefully laid Arin down and pulled out all the bits he had stashed in his pockets. He was astonished to see a rather large pile form on the ground between the four of them as they tossed their coins down. Then they quickly used the waning sunlight to count the money they had.

"It looks like we have 5,000 bits," Felicity said softly, looking up. "This should be enough for a few rooms at the inn, right?"

"We should be able to buy you guys some clothing, too," Surya said. He looked up. "Why don't you guys head to the inn first and I'll go and get some outfits for you? I scouted the inn earlier, and it looks like it's run by a woman and her two daughters. They don't have any guests there, so that should draw less attention to you guys. Sound like a good plan?"

"Make sure to get me a veil, though," Felicity told him. "And it must be a thin veil, not a solid one."

"I saw several women wearing veils in town," Surya said, looking over his shoulder. "What's the difference between the two veils?"

"A solid veil means I'm married," Felicity said. "But a thinner, see-through veil means I'm not. I'm not married, so please make sure to get me a thinner veil."

"All right, all right." Surya counted out some bits and shoved them into his pockets. "Be careful, guys."

"Do you really know what style of clothes to get for our age group?" Roen asked him.

"I saw enough people in town that I can hazard a guess."

"But will you know the right styles?" Felicity asked. She had a bit of a teasing tone to it. "I can't imagine a Queen's Knight like you having much interest in fashion."

Surya shrugged. "I've grown up in a matriarchal society with girls as my primary companions, so I've picked up a few things. I'll see you guys in a bit."

Surya hurried off, and the trio collected the remainder of the money and stood. "Hopefully we beat the guards to the town," Roen said softly.

They kept to the outskirts of town as to not draw attention towards themselves. Daunte held onto Arin and he was holding his breath. He was unsettled by the unending praise the townspeople were showering upon the Theocracy. _Please, please let us make it to the inn without any problems! And PLEASE let the innkeeper not report us!_

They found the inn in the center of town. They'd successfully walked the perimeter of town behind houses, but they knew they would have to go to the front and into town itself in order to get inside the inn. They tried to act as nonchalantly as possible, but they felt overexposed with their prison attire and unhealthy appearances. But they reached the front door with no problems and Felicity swiftly knocked on the door.

There was no answer. Daunte looked over his shoulder but saw that they still hadn't drawn anyone's attention. But he knew that wouldn't last long and Felicity quickly knocked again. "Hello?" she called out.

The door abruptly swung open. They gaped down at the little girl standing before them. The child looked to be about six or seven years old, but her gray eyes looked somber. Her brown hair was short to her shoulders and curly. She wore a bright yellow shapeless long-sleeved dress, but the cheerful color contrasted strongly with her blank expression. She said nothing to them. She didn't invite them in or send them away. She just stood there and stared at them.

Daunte coughed awkwardly. He knew he could be polite or smart-mouth the child for not reacting to potential guests. But ultimately he knew he should be polite to the little girl. "D-Do you have rooms available?"

The child still said nothing. But after a moment she moved backwards away from the door and gestured at them to follow her inside. They complied, quickly closing the door behind them.

The lobby of the inn was warm and comforting. There was a check-in desk to their right, but nobody was attending it. A stairwell was next to the check-in desk, and there was an archway leading into a large dining room. The trio slid off their worn shoes, and Daunte felt a little self-conscious about his dirty feet touching such clean wooden floors. "What are your nightly rates?" he asked the girl.

She didn't reply to them. She just stood in the hallway, casually glancing over her shoulder. "W-W won't stay long," he added hastily. "We just need some rest, and—"

"Ciana!"

They jumped as a second girl hurried from down the hall. This girl looked much older than the other, maybe about thirteen years old. Well, she would've _had_ to have been at least thirteen, since she wore a thin pink veil on her head. Once a Nagarean girl turned thirteen it was required that she start wearing a veil at all times. Her hair was curly like the other girl's—Ciana's—but it whas honey blonde and not brown, and it was a little longer than Ciana's. She also wore a similar dress to Ciana, but hers was light pink to match her veil.

The second girl knelt beside Ciana, grabbing her shoulders. "What did we tell you about opening the front door by yourself? You can't just let anyone in! What if it's a bad person who might take you from us?!"

"We have guests, Esther," Ciana said bluntly. She'd been so quiet up to that point that hearing her voice took everyone by surprise.

"That doesn't—" Esther glanced at them while she scolded Ciana, but when she saw them she paused. She abruptly straightened, her dark brown eyes wide and her face going pale. "O-Oh. Hello."

 _She knows. She knows we're from the Dark Chasm._

"W-We need a room," Roen stammered. He shifted on his feet. "Do you have any rooms available?"

"I…uh…" Esther looked around the room frantically. She suddenly grabbed Ciana by her hand and took off running back down the hallway. "Mom!"

Roen quickly looked at Daunte and Felicity. "We need to go! Now!"

"B-But Surya hasn't come back!" Felicity said. "We can't leave without meeting up with him!"

"It was a stupid idea for us to come here _before_ we got new clothes! We have to go before they notify the authorities about us!"

Daunte knew that they could either run for it or wait. Esther's reaction to them was worrisome, but he had an inkling about something. Somehow…Somehow he felt that maybe they didn't need to run yet.

So he said, "Let's wait a moment."

"But—" Roen began.

"Welcome, guests."

They jumped in surprise. A beautiful woman emerged from the hallway holding Esther and Ciana's hands, smiling so maternally that Daunte immediately felt at ease. She had the same curly honey-blonde hair as Esther, but her eyes were gray like Ciana's. She wore a solid dark purple veil on her head, indicating that she was married, but unlike the girls she didn't wear a shapeless dress. She wore a dark purple tunic that split at waist level, and baggy beige pants. "My name is Tidur, and I'm the owner of this inn. I see you all have met my daughters, Esther and Ciana. I must apologize for my daughters. We don't usually receive visitors your age without chaperones."

Daunte was embarrassed to find himself staring at her mouth. He couldn't help but notice that there was a pink, thin line starting from her bottom lip and traveling down the center of her chin. It contrasted startlingly with her olive complexion.

 _Is that a scar?_ But it would've been very inappropriate for him to ask that.

"I-Is it all right that we stay here?" Roen asked nervously.

"Of course," Tidur said. She let go of her daughters' hands and moved to stand behind the counter. "I charge 50 bits per night. Is this okay?"

"O-Of course," Felicity said. She counted out the bits and handed it to her. "We have another person joining us shortly, so there will be five of us. Is that okay?"

"Sure. My largest room has six beds, or I can give you each paired rooms. Which would you prefer?"

"W-We'll take the largest room, please," Daunte said.

"Mom—" Esther said, her tone having a hint of warning.

" _Esther_." Tidur addressed her daughter with a different tone. It wasn't quite sharp, but it wasn't quite friendly. She smiled again at the teenagers. "Shall I show you to your rooms?"

"I have a question," Roen asked suddenly. "Why are you accommodating us? You're not tricking us, are you?"

"Roen!" Felicity hissed, and Daunte felt his stomach do flip-flops. He was angry with Roen's lack of tact but he was also concerned about why Tidur was treating them with hospitality when they so obviously escaped from the Dark Chasm.

Tidur thankfully didn't look offended by Roen's question. "It's not a trick. You're our guests, and you'll be treated like guests. Whatever the reason you're here for is none of our business." She gestured to the stairs. "Shall we?"

They shuffled up the stairs after Tidur. "We have running water, so if you want to take a shower or bath you can do so. I must say your timing is perfect. I was just about to start preparing dinner, but now I'll be able to increase the servings so all of you will be able to eat." They rounded the bannister and walked to the room at the end of the hall. "My family and I sleep on the first floor, so if you have any questions our room is beyond the kitchen. Do you have any requests for dinner?"

They honestly couldn't think of anything because the only food they had had for the last several years was bread and porridge. Daunte knew he would be satisfied with _anything_ she made for them. "W-Whatever you usually make," he told her.

Tidur smiled at them again. There seemed to be a hint of sadness to it. "I'll make something easy for your stomachs. I'll ring the bell when dinner is ready." She opened the door to the room for them and bowed before heading back downstairs.

As Tidur promised, there were six twin-sized beds in the room, and two dressers. There was also a porcelain basin right next to a beautifully decorated window. "Yes, a _real bed_!" Roen shouted, his voice echoing in the room. He ran over to a bed and threw himself onto it. "I haven't slept in a real bed in almost five years!"

"I'm going to go take a shower," Felicity said, unstrapping her knives belt and laying it out on top of one of the dressers. "I want to be clean when Surya arrives with our new clothes."

"I call dibs next," Roen said, sitting up as Felicity left the room. The sheets had become slightly dirty from his body and he flushed. "Do you want to go after me, Daunte?"

"Yes," Daunte said. He laid Arin on one of the beds and walked over to the basin. "In the meantime, I'll give Arin a sponge bath. When he's well enough to walk I'll let him take a bath on his own."

Roen stood up and hurried to stand next to Daunte at the basin. "Hey, Daunte."

"What is it?"

"For what it's worth, I'm glad we made it out of the Dark Chasm. But what are we supposed to do now?"

Daunte wrung out a small towel and glanced at Roen. "Our only options right now are to take care of Arin and help Surya find his family."

"But won't that just get us even more in trouble with the Theocracy?"

Daunte stilled. Roen was right. They owed Surya considerably, but he was also a Falenean, and Nagarea wasn't on good terms with Falena. If they helped Surya find the Falenean Royal Family, the Theocracy would bring their full fury down upon them.

 _But do we have any other choice?_

"What other options do we have, Roen?" Daunte asked him. "If we turn ourselves in, they'll either kill us or send us back to the Dark Chasm. And they'll certainly kill or maim me to get my True Rune. Either way we're damned."

"…You're right," Roen said. He nodded. "Then we really do have no choice but to stick with Surya on this."

"Exactly." Daunte shook out the wet towel and went back over to Arin.

* * *

Having a shower for the first time in three years awakened Daunte's senses in such a way that he was unfamiliar with. Feeling hot water on his skin and being able to wash himself with soap…just these little things so easily taken for granted. Being able to clean himself so easily now made Daunte feel more and more like a person again.

The shower however forced him to confront his physical appearance. The True Rune was still visible on his hand, but he was scrawny in appearance and his bones pressed up against his skin. His arms had tone to them but he had very little body fat, and very little muscle mass. He had small scars all over his body, ranging from minor injuries to poorly healed broken bones.

And his hands…they were the worst. He hated that he couldn't stand to look at his own body.

There was a knock on the door. "Daunte?"

It was Surya. He'd come back. "Yes?" Daunte called out.

"I got an outfit for you. Can I come in and leave it out for you?"

"Sure, t-thank you." The bathtub had a shower curtain that could give him privacy. He heard Surya come in. "I'll leave your clothes on the clothes bin, okay? Let me know whether or not they fit, okay?"

"I will, thank you."

Surya left the bathroom, and Daunte finished his shower not long afterwards. He quickly dried himself off and eagerly surveyed the clothes Surya had gotten for him. It was the first time in over three years that he would be dressed in something other than prison clothes, and he knew that this particular set of clothes would be one that he would be wearing for a long period of time.

He saw the pants first. They were red, a very vibrant color, and the leggings were slim. Men's fashion choices in Nagarea allowed for more freedom in that they weren't required to wear baggy clothing like women were, and Daunte was glad for it. Without baggy pants he would be able to run away faster.

The tunic Surya had picked out was partially long-sleeved—they came down to his elbows—and it was a pale smoky gray color. He slid the shirt on and immediately felt self-conscious about the fact that it felt _loose_ on his body. It was another unpleasant reminder of everything he had suffered.

 _It's okay, though. I'm out of the Dark Chasm and the next time I see that place is when I liberate it. I just need to eat better food, and my clothes won't feel so large on me._

The final piece to his outfit was the waistcoat. It was the same color as the pants, and buttoning it up made it less obvious that the clothes were too large on him. Daunte looked himself over one last time. Red was an eye-catching color, and he knew it probably wasn't such a good idea to wear red while on the run. Strangely though, he felt strength and power from the color red, and it gave him confidence. When he looked at his reflection, the colors popped out in such a way that he didn't notice his physical condition or the state of his hands.

Speaking of his hands, as he finished getting dressed something else caught his eye. It was a pair of long black gloves. Daunte examined them and quickly knew what they were.

 _These are tekko gloves._

As helpful as Dr. Yulin's gloves were in helping him grip the tekko, having an actual pair of tekko gloves definitely made the weapon feel more like it belonged to him.

Before leaving the bathroom though, Daunte made sure to slide them on. They were long enough to reach up to his elbows and cover his lower arms, and they covered the back of his hands up to the first knuckle of his fingers. It made the physical condition of his hands less noticeable, for sure.

He opened the door to his room, and his stomach twisted at the excited shout he heard. " _Wow_ , Daunte!"

Arin was fully awake. He was still laying down in bed, but he was dressed in an actual pair of pajamas and the color had fully returned to his cheeks. "Big brother, you look so cool!"

Daunte looked at Surya, who raised his left hand. "It's almost dinnertime, so I thought it would be best if he was well enough to eat."

Daunte hurried to Arin's bedside and sat down on his bed. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm feeling better," Arin told him. "I-I tried to sit up but I got really dizzy, but I feel fi—" he was interrupted by a violent coughing fit.

"Easy," Daunte told him, patting him on the back. He couldn't help feeling dread though as Arin coughed up more unpleasant fluid from his lungs. Only this time though…it wasn't the color of tar. The color had a lighter tone, and was more dark-brown than black.

 _He's much better than before, but still not well enough._

"Just take it easy," Daunte said, cleaning him up. "You just need plenty of rest, some actual food, and a few more healing spells."

Arin finished his coughing fit, but the child clearly looked distressed. "H-How long will I be sick for, Daunte?"

"Not much longer." Daunte honestly didn't know if this was the truth or not, but he wanted to reassure his brother and make sure nothing distressed him.

"I'm glad to be back in regular clothes," Roen said, stretching his arms over his head. He was dressed very similarly to Daunte, except he had a gold and black color palette of black pants and waistcoat with a gold shirt with sleeves down to his wrists. He laughed wryly. "I want to get use to this, but I keep waiting for the other shoe to drop."

"We'll be fine," Surya said. Unlike the others he was still dressed in his Falenean clothes. "But speaking of shoes, you guys will need to buy a pair tomorrow. I don't know your shoe sizes, so I wasn't able to get anything for you."

"Believe me, these clothes are enough," Roen reassured him.

"Damn it all!"

Daunte looked up at this shout. Felicity was sitting on her bed, and she looked like she was on the verge of tears. Surya had gotten her an outfit undoubtedly that would be easy for travel, consisting of a forest green tunic and brown shapeless pants. But the pale-green thin veil was pooled around her on the bed. "No matter what I do, I can't secure this damn veil!" She wrung a hand through her short auburn hair. "I'm using as many bobby pins as I can, but it keeps falling off! My hair is too short and thin to hold it!"

Daunte stared blankly at her. Maybe it was a girl thing, but he didn't quite understand why Felicity was so upset about not being able to set the veil properly on her head. It was just a veil, after all.

 _Maybe she sees it as a chance of feeling normal again? But it's not staying secure because her hair is so short, and that's reminding her of everything she suffered?_

He knew he could tell her to suck it up given that there was other more serious matters they needed to worry about, or he could help her as she had helped him in the past.

So he said, "Do you want me to help you?"

Felicity looked at him, surprised. "Y-You would do that for me, Daunte?"

Daunte shrugged. "Sure. Just hold the veil in place and I'll try and secure it with the bobby pins."

Roen snorted, and slapped both hands over his mouth. Daunte gave him a dark look. "What?"

"Nothing, nothing." He waved a hand, but he was still grinning.

Daunte rolled his eyes and awkwardly set about the task of trying to secure Felicity's veil on her head. He pressed the bobby pins deep so that they would snag onto her short hair, but not so deep that they would scratch her scalp. But he would have to secure _that_ bobby pin with two more before moving on. Luckily the bobby pins were small enough that he could maintain his grip on them.

"What was so funny?" Daunte heard Surya whisper to Roen.

Roen snickered again before whispering back. "Guys _never_ secure a girl's veil. The only time he does is during their _wedding ceremony_."

Daunte jerked violently, and the bobby pins slipped from between his fingers. _Oh. I forgot that._

"Roen, be quiet!" Felicity admonished him. "Daunte, it's fine. Just please finish. I can already feel they're already more secure than before."

"J-Just use three bobby pins for each part next time," Daunte stammered, scrambling to pick up the bobby pins and finishing the job.

As he finished, a bell chimed from downstairs. "Dinner must be ready," Roen said, quickly standing up. "I'm looking forward to eating something other than porridge and rock-hard bread!"

Felicity checked the veil and nodded. "Thank you, Daunte. It's weird how having a complete outfit makes me feel like a whole person."

"You're welcome," Daunte told her.

"I'm hungry," Arin said. He pushed back the covers and sat up. "I—" but he swooned and nearly toppled out of bed.

Daunte quickly caught him before he hit the floor. "I-I'll bring you up some food in a little bit. In the meantime, please rest."

Arin huffed in disappointment, but allowed Daunte to settle him back into bed. "All right. Hey Daunte?"

"What is it?"

"Does this mean you're married to Felicity now?"

Daunte flushed, but at the same time felt a headache come on. He knew he could tease his brother and say yes, but doing so meant that he would never hear the end of it. "…No," he said finally.

"Oh." Arin smiled at him. "Come back quickly, okay?"

"I will."

* * *

Daunte smelled the food the minute he left the room. His stomach cramped painfully, but he shook his head. _We've been underfed for years. We'll just need to pace ourselves and not overeat._

"—real trouble!"

Daunte saw Roen, Felicity, and Surya standing on the stairs and he hurried down to them. "What's wrong?" he hissed.

"Listen," Roen said. They all listened carefully.

"Mom, we must be careful!" they could hear Esther arguing from the kitchen. "Those strangers ran away from the Dark Chasm! I just know they did!"

"Esther, there has only been one recorded case of a child successfully escaping the Dark Chasm." Tidur spoke in a soft, reassuring voice. "And that was just one child. These are five children. They're probably just homeless drifters who saved up enough money after fighting monsters in the Rocky Plains to come here and rest."

"Mom, we've heard the rumors about the Dark Chasm!" Esther insisted. "A-And the prison uniforms posted in the town square for everyone to keep an eye out for? They were wearing those uniforms!"

"Sweetheart, those poor children were so dirty that there's no way of knowing where they got their clothes."

" _Mom_." Esther's tone was growing darker and more serious. "Mom, if they _did_ escape from the Chasm, do you know what the High Clerics would do to us if they found out we gave them food and board?! Ciana and I might end up in the Dark Chasm ourselves! And you—"

"That won't happen to us, Esther. You mustn't be so worried. What is going on in our guests' lives is none of our business."

"But what if Dad—"

" _Esther_." Tidur spoke sharply for the first time. "Enough."

"Hey."

The four of them jumped as they found Ciana in front of them. They hadn't heard her approach. "You're dressed differently. Except for you." She pointed to Surya.

"How do we look?" Felicity asked, hurrying down the stairs to show off her new clothes.

"Better," Ciana answered. "Dinner's ready."

"Good," Surya said. He hurried down the stairs as well.

Daunte watched Ciana carefully. He honestly couldn't blame Esther for being apprehensive about them. _He_ certainly wouldn't want to be responsible for condemning the sisters to the Dark Chasm.

 _Hopefully our arrival in town didn't draw suspicion._

Food was already set out on the long table in the center of the dining room. There was baskets of breads, pots of soup, and various bowls of salad laid out. Tidur had promised them food that would be easy for their stomachs, and Daunte knew that these types of food wouldn't cause them problems.

But seeing the food made him dizzy. He glanced at Felicity and Roen and saw that they were equally overwhelmed at seeing the food.

"Oh, you changed outfits?" Tidur came out of the kitchen, followed by Esther. "These clothes suit you all much better. Here, help yourself. Eat as much as you want."

"W-Would I be able to take a tray up to my brother?" Daunte asked her as he sat down.

"Certainly. I'll get a bowl of soup and some bread ready for him." Tidur was still smiling as she disappeared back into the kitchen.

Daunte hesitantly helped himself to the food. Esther was making Ciana's plate in silence and wasn't speaking to them. Shaking his head, he took a slice of bread and bit into it. He was startled to feel his teeth sink into the slice easily, and not face any resistance.

 _That's because it's a fresh slice of bread. I'm eating actual food._

He tried to pace himself to not make himself sick, but Daunte couldn't help but inhale all the food on his plate very quickly. It was fresh, delicious food. It made his stomach cramp again, but his heart was pounding. The little reminders of everything he had missed out on for the last three years made tears sting his eyes.

It was also bittersweet, though. Because he was enjoying a good meal for the first time in a long time, but over three hundred children in the Dark Chasm continued to suffer.

"So, where are you all from?" Esther asked suddenly, settling over her own dinner plate.

Daunte glanced at her, and then glanced at Roen and Felicity. They both looked uneasy by her question. Daunte turned back to her, wondering if he should be quiet or give her an answer.

But Esther was technically their hosts, and Daunte didn't want to offend her. "Mlkwt Alsmwat," he told her.

"Kõrkus," Roen also answered her honestly.

"Farna," Felicity also added. Daunte felt a jolt of shock rip through his body at this revelation.

"The Plague Town?" Ciana asked suddenly.

"Ciana!" Esther scolded her. But the girl's features relaxed softly as she looked at Felicity. "I'm sorry."

Felicity waved a hand. "It's fine."

"Did you lose anyone to the Plague?" Ciana continued asking.

"Ciana—"

"My mom," Felicity told her. "It was very hard for my dad and me."

Daunte stared at her. Farna was in the southern part of Nagarea, and the last settlement before the Red Tundra region, named such because the entire landscape was red as blood and vegetation was extremely scarce. It had been a popular town for extreme travelers, but twelve years ago the town was struck by an unknown deadly Plague that had killed hundreds of people. Today the Plague was long gone, but the town never recovered from the tragedy, either population-wise or emotionally.

Daunte honestly hadn't known that Felicity came from Farna, and that she'd survived the Plague. The only family she had ever talked about was her father, but her father had committed some crime that had gotten her sentenced to the Dark Chasm.

 _But there's many things about me that I haven't told Roen and Felicity about. I guess we all have our secrets._

Surya was pointedly not mentioning where he was from, and Daunte desperately wanted to change the subject. He then noticed the twin set of windows on the wall before him, and how beautifully decorated they were. "Those widows looked great," he said lamely.

"Really?" Esther brightened, and she smiled a little. "Thank you. It's not much, but I enjoy doing it."

"Oh, _you_ decorated the windows Esther?" Felicity chimed in. She also seemed pleased by the change in subject. "You're very talented!"

"It's just a hobby right now. But I think windows are the best feature of a house, so I like dressing them up." Esther was relaxing more and more in their presence and that was reassuring to Daunte. He could understand the girl's apprehension with them being there, but he didn't want them to experience any more problems.

"I'm glad to see you all getting along so well." Tidur resurfaced from the kitchen with a tray ready. There was already a cup of milk on it and she took servings from the soup, salad, and bread on the table to arrange them on the tray.

"They like my windows, Mom!" Esther was positively smiling now. "None of the other guests have ever noticed them before!"

"Well, _these_ guest must have better eyes than the others." Tidur smiled at them as she finished preparing the tray, and Daunte couldn't help but reflexively smile back. He knew he shouldn't let his guard down around strangers, but Tidur was so kind and just… _genuine_ in her demeanor that he could naturally relax around her.

 _She's the perfect innkeeper, for sure._

"Will this be enough for your brother?" she asked Daunte.

Daunte looked over the food and nodded. "Yes, thank you. Let me take it up now—"

"Nonsense, finish your dinner first. While it's admirable you're so watchful of your brother, you need to take care of yourself too. Otherwise you're not helping anyone."

Daunte sighed, and sat back down. Roen and Felicity were smiling at him but he shook his head. Maybe he _was_ trying too hard. After all, he'd almost died shielding Arin from a fire spell.

 _But if I hadn't reacted, then Arin would've died. It's very difficult balancing taking care of both Arin and myself when I can barely do either._

* * *

"Arin, make sure to eat slowly." Daunte had propped Arin up in a sitting position and settled the tray in the boy's lap. "But also eat as much as you can, okay?"

"I-I'll try. The food smells so good, but the smell makes my stomach hurt."

"That's because it's real food, and we haven't had real food in a long time. Try eating some bread first."

Arin shook his head. "I-I don't like bread."

"This bread is better—"

"But all we had to eat for so long was rock-hard stale bread. I'm sick of bread. I'll try the soup." Arin tried to pick up the spoon, but it slipped out of his fingers and clattered back onto the tray.

"Here, let me help you." Daunte picked up the spoon and scooped up plenty of vegetables and broth. "We're the only ones in here, so you don't have to worry about being embarrassed."

Arin shook his head. "You could never embarrass me, Brother." He accepted the spoonful of soup.

It was heartwarming to hear Arin say that and Daunte managed a smile as he carefully fed his younger brother. "You're doing well. Just a couple days ago you didn't have the energy to wake up. Now you're awake and talking. It's a good sign, Arin."

"I hate being sick, Daunte. I want to be well again."

"You will be."

Daunte finished feeding him the soup, but he turned back to the bread. "Please eat at least one slice. You'll insult the nice lady who made all this food for us."

Arin sighed heavily, but picked up a slice. "All right. But only because you told me so." But despite his apprehension, Arin ate the single slice of bread in just three bites.

"It's almost time for bed," Daunte said. "Are you full?"

"Yes. Thank you, Daunte."

"Sure, no problem." He lifted the tray from his lap. Arin hadn't touched the salad, but he'd eaten most everything else on the tray and drank the whole cup of milk. That was very reassuring to him. As he drew it away though, Daunte felt his fingers tremble violently under the tray. Panicking, he ran to the dresser and unceremoniously dropped it on the surface. The dishes turned over, but thankfully nothing broke.

 _Why? Why did I lose my grip? I was able to carry it upstairs just fine!_ He braced his hands on the surface of the dresser and sighed sharply.

"Are you okay, Brother?" Arin asked behind him.

Daunte nodded jerkily. "I-I'm fine."

"Okay." There was a long moment of silence before Arin spoke. "Daunte?"

"What is it?"

"Where's Kass?"

It felt like a knife to his gut. Daunte looked up and his stomach squirmed even more as he caught his reflection in the mirror on the wall. His face was full of pain. He ducked his head back down because he couldn't stand looking at it, and he also didn't want Arin to see it. "…Arin," he said quietly. He had to keep his voice low because it suddenly hurt to talk.

"He's dead, isn't he?"

Daunte spun around. Arin had a somber expression on his young face. He looked down at his hands. "I…I thought so. Otherwise Kass would be here with us."

Daunte left the dresser and came back to Arin's side. He slid an arm around his small shoulders and pulled him close. "I'm sorry."

"I…I saw something," Arin confessed softly, ducking his head down a little more. "When the mining cart accident happened, I w-woke up a little bit. I thought it was a bad dream, but now I know it wasn't."

"What did you see?"

Arin curled into himself, not looking at Daunte. "I saw them carry Kass in."

Daunte felt bile in his throat and he hugged Arin tighter. But the child continued. "He looked so bad, Daunte. His h-h-h-head looked like a cracked eggshell, and his right arm was bent the wrong way. I thought I was dreaming—I screamed, or I thought I screamed, but everything was so fuzzy! I thought it was a dream—why couldn't it have been a dream? Why, Daunte?!"

Arin began to cry. Daunte turned the boy in his arms and stretched out on the bed. Arin clung to him, but the hold was so weak. Even his sobbing sounded weak, and after a while Arin suffered another coughing fit. Daunte patted his back, and held a towel to his face so he could cough into it.

Despite his distress, Daunte couldn't find his own tears. He didn't know if he was trying to be strong for his brother, or if he was so emotionally raw that he didn't have the energy for it.

 _I will make them pay. I don't care how long it takes me, but I swear I won't let them get away with what they've done to us!_

At that point though, he didn't know if it was an actual promise, or just him venting his anger.

* * *

Daunte shared a bed with Arin that night. After the terrible story the boy had told him, Daunte didn't want to leave his side. The others didn't seem to mind seeing them share a bed. Daunte didn't tell Roen or Felicity what Arin told him. He knew it wouldn't help their mentality with their current situation.

The next morning they set out into the town proper after breakfast so that they could each get a new pair of shoes. Daunte estimated the measurements of Arin's feet and made a mental note to get shoes that would be large for him.

Tidur was still kind to them, and she agreed to watch Arin while the four of them went out. Esther even asked if she could go shopping with them, but Tidur told her not to interfere.

They first went to a trade stall and sold all of the items they could trade. They allowed Surya to handle the transactions for it. Then they went and bought shoes. It felt weird wearing a brand-new pair of shoes after being without such for so long, but Daunte wanted to get use to the feeling.

 _We're out of there and we're not going back._ He made sure to buy Arin his own pair of shoes too.

They didn't want to draw attention to themselves, but the trio was just so happy to be out in public like _normal_ that it was hard to not be joyful. They were chatting and laughing as they got fitted into light armor, and they were just as joyous when they went into the item shop and stocked up on potions and antidotes. Luckily nobody looked twice at them, though a few people paused when they saw Surya's Falenean clothing.

"I saw a blacksmith down the road," Surya mentioned at one point. "How about we go and sharpen our weapons?"

"How much does that usually cost?" Roen asked.

"I have no idea the rates here in Nagarea, but it can be pretty expensive in Falena. But I think we can get them sharpened by at least a level."

"A level?" Felicity wondered.

"It sounds weird, but blacksmiths rate the conditions of weapons numerically. Level one is the weapon at its "weakest" state, and level sixteen is a weapon that's virtually perfect. From what I understand though, most blacksmiths aren't capable of sharpening a weapon to level sixteen. Not unless they have the right hammer to do the trick."

"So our weapons are probably at level one, right?" Daunte asked him, looking at his tekko.

"My tri-nunchaku is level "three"," Surya said. "So we don't need to waste money on it. But I bet your weapons could use a good sharpening."

They reached the blacksmith, and the man greeted them kindly. "Welcome, welcome! Come, bring your weapons forward and I will see what I can do!"

"How high can you raise the weapons to?" Surya asked him as the others presented their weapons to them.

"Level five. I'm afraid the arthritis in my hands has taken its toll on me and so I can't go any higher. Let's see…" the blacksmith looked over the weapons.

Daunte's hands and lower arms felt sticky with sweat under the gloves, so he carefully peeled them off so he could air them out. He angled his right hand away from the blacksmith's gaze though, so he couldn't see his True Rune.

"Daunte."

He looked up. Surya had come over to him and was looking down at his hands. Daunte followed his gaze and immediately saw the state of his fingers. It occurred to him that Surya had never really seen the state of his hands before. He looked back up at Surya. "T-They—I broke them. Several times. They just never healed properly."

"All of them?" Surya hissed at him.

Daunte nodded grimly. "All of them. I've broken all my fingers more than once. This one, I…" he gestured to the pinky finger on his left hand. "I broke this one at least six times."

"Is this why you chose a tekko for your weapon?"

Daunte's throat hurt. He didn't like talking about it, but he also wanted to be honest with Surya. "My grip is completely shot." He clenched and unclenched his hands. Because of the condition of his fingers, they bent at odd angles against his palm. "It's damn near impossible for me to hold certain objects without dropping them. But I've had no problem so far with the tekko."

"…I see," Surya said after a long moment of silence. Daunte didn't look him in the eye because he was afraid he would see pity in the other boy's gaze. He didn't want to see pity.

"I see!" the blacksmith said behind them. Daunte hid his hands behind his back as they turned around. "These are all level one weapons! I can sharp them to level two for 500 bits apiece!"

"So 1,500 bits total?" Surya asked, moving back over to them. "Sounds good."

Daunte felt his hands tremble behind his back and he let out his breath slowly. Then he turned around to shove his gloves back on. He could still see the tips of his fingers, but it wasn't as bad as looking at his bare hands.

 _I may have escaped that horrible place, but I don't think I'll be able to escape what happened to me there. My fingers will certainly remind me._

* * *

"Welcome back." Arin was smiling at them from his bed as they re-entered their inn room. He was out of his pajamas and dressed in clothes had ironically mirrored Daunte's style. Except he was wearing a red tunic and smoky gray waistcoat and pants. The distress from last night was gone and he looked more cheerful, though Daunte had a feeling that Arin's grief over Kass's death wouldn't simply go away.

 _We're dealing with it because there's so much going on right now that we haven't had time to really absorb his loss. So Arin's probably doing the same._

"All right, we need to talk," Surya announced. He dumped the satchel full of their supplies on his bed. "We've stocked up on items, and have better weapons and actual armor. I think we should stay one more night and then head straight to Baltas. Are you okay with traveling, Arin?"

"Sure, I am! I've never been to Baltas, so I'm excited about going!"

"This isn't a simple trip though, Arin," Roen said, sitting down on his own bed. "We're going to help Surya find his family."

"Hopefully at least _one_ of your cousins is in Baltas," Daunte said, sitting down. "That will save us some time."

"Well we're bound to find clues," Felicity said, cracking her neck a bit. "But I've been wondering. What do we do after that?"

"I have to look for my other cousins," Surya said.

"No, I mean after the Falenean royals are rescued. What do _we_ do?" she gestured to Daunte, Roen, and Arin. "We're technically heretics on the run. What do we do after helping you?"

"We'll gladly give all of you residence inside Sol-Falena," Surya offered.

"But that won't help the other children of the Dark Chasm," Daunte said. "Leaving the country only helps _us_. But what about them?"

"How will you save them, though? Doing so requires a large battalion, possibly even an army."

"Which we don't have," Roen said miserably.

Daunte sighed, and looked down at his lap. It was hard thinking about the future when there were so few _prospects_ they could realistically go for.

 _But we can't abandon the other children. We have to do_ _ **something**_ _for them!_

Daunte heard a creak in the floorboards in the hallway and quickly stood up from the bed. _Someone was eavesdropping!_

He rushed to the door and swung it open. Ciana was standing there, her face unmoving. It was impossible to know whether or not she had heard anything. Daunte debated whether or not he should question her or let her go, but ultimately he decided that there was great concern for their personal safety and reached out and grabbed her hand. He pulled her into the room and closed the door behind her, surprised that she didn't put up any resistance.

"Ciana?!" Roen balked, standing up. "W-What are you doing?!"

"What are _you_ doing?" Ciana asked him, though her tone didn't sound accusatory.

"Ciana, were you standing outside listening in on us?" Surya asked her. He knelt down and put his hands on her shoulders. "You know that's rude, right?"

"This is my home," Ciana said. "You are guests. I don't see the point in privacy. Besides, that didn't stop any of you from listening to my mom and sister talking last night."

"How long were you standing outside the door?" Felicity asked her.

"Since you guys came back from your shopping trip," Ciana answered bluntly.

Daunte looked at Surya, and the other boy's expression was grim. _She heard everything we said._

"O-Oh my gosh," Felicity said, pressing a hand over her heart. "What should we do about this?"

Before Daunte could think of a reply, there was a thunderous pounding downstairs. Surya grabbed his tri-nunchaku off the bed and everyone stood to attention. Felicity reached for Ciana, and Arin looked at everyone around the room worriedly.

"—are you doing?!" Esther shouted from downstairs. "You broke our front door! Why did you do that?!"

"Quiet, girl!" an unfamiliar male voice snapped at her. "Fetch your mother _now_!"

"I'm here." Tidur's voice surfaced downstairs. "Don't raise your voice to my daughter."

"La—"

" _Do I make myself clear_?" Tidur's usually calm voice was now very sharp and angry. "Who is your commanding officer? I will be submitting both a written and verbal complaint regarding this destruction to my property."

"You—"

"Lady Tidur Faakhir." A new voice spoke respectfully. "Please forgive our intrusion here. We will compensate you for your damaged front door."

Daunte's eyes went wide. _Faakhir?!_ He looked at Roen and Felicity, and their faces were full of fright.

"My Lady, we need your fullest cooperation regarding a serious matter," the second voice continued. "As the wife of Sheikh Sloan Faakhir, I know we can rely on you for support."


	6. Chapter One: Part Six

Part Six

"In the name of Nagar…" Roen breathed. He rubbed a hand over his head nervously as he looked at the others. "Sloan Faakhir? We've trapped ourselves with the _Sheikh's family_?!"

"Who is Sloan Faakhir?" Surya asked. He still had his tri-nunchaku out and moved to stand beside the closed door.

"He's a monster," Felicity said. She flushed though and quickly looked at Ciana. "Uh…I-I mean…"

But Ciana didn't give any visible reaction to the insult against her father. Daunte looked away from her to look at Surya. He didn't know if he should be upfront about Sloan's true nature in front of Ciana, or if should keep quiet. After quietly debating it for a moment, he decided to speak up. "The man has ungodly physical strength, and from what I've seen his presence terrifies everybody around him. He…" his breath hitched for a moment before he continued. "He tried to kill me with his bare hands."

"Yeah," Roen admitted quietly. "He beat Daunte unconscious, and then just kept beating him and beating him. It was so frightening…he only stopped when another soldier interrupted him."

"Mr. Adalgiso?" Ciana asked.

"Who?" Felicity asked her.

"My father's second-in-command." Ciana's tone was still calm and she did nothing to try and deny the allegations against her father. Her expression was still blank.

"Y-Yes, that was him," Daunte confirmed. "Dr. Yulin told me such."

"I thought so," Ciana said. "Mr. Adalgiso always stands up to my father. And my father never punishes him for it." Her neutral tone dipped very slightly. Almost sounding… _bitter_.

"—understand what your situation is," Tidur said from downstairs. "But I no longer have association with that man. I must ask you to leave."

"My Lady, whatever your current situation is, you are still legally his wife," the soldier answered her. "And the Sheikh most urgently needs your help with this."

"Then why isn't he here?"

"The Sheikh is very busy, and—"

"Too busy to deliver an order to me in person?"

"We need to get out of here," Roen said, standing up from the bed. "If they catch us, then they'll kill us! Or they'll send us back to the Dark Chasm!"

"I'd rather die than go back there," Felicity said sharply. She rushed over to the dresser and grabbed her knife belt.

"What should we do about her?" Surya said, gesturing to Ciana. "She heard everything we said, so she knows the truth about us. She may tell them about us."

Ciana stared back at him. She said nothing to reassure him or confirm his suspicions. Daunte himself didn't know what the best option was.

"—you're assistance," the conversation continued downstairs. "Teenaged heretics are on the loose, my Lady. One of which has stolen something extremely valuable from the Grand Citadel itself! The High Clerics have offered a handsome reward for their capture, and we have heard that you took in some teenagers as guests yesterday. Please show us to their rooms."

"Get ready," Surya said. He left the door and checked out one of the beautiful windows in the room. "We'll have to make a jump for it."

"This is outrageous!" Felicity fumed. "Saying that we stole something from the Grand Citadel?!"

"Is that so?" Tidur answered from downstairs. "A teenager was able to breach the impregnable Grand Citadel to commit theft? That's truly a first, isn't it?"

"My Lady—"

"You are mistaken, sir. I harbor no heretics in my establishment. I'm going to have to ask you to leave."

"But my Lady—"

"I _insist_ , sir."

"F-Forgive me for saying so, my Lady, but you don't seem to understand the gravity of the situation. This is a matter of national security. I'm afraid we're going to have to compel you to open your establishment to us and allow us to search."

"Daunte, we need to go!" Roen hissed at him. "And if we have to take Ciana along to protect us, then we might have to!"

"Daunte, we can't kidnap her!" Arin protested from the bed. "We'd be no better than the people who imprisoned us!"

"She heard where we came from and where we're going," Surya reminded them. "Even if she promises to keep quiet, I don't trust your government from trying to force a confession out of her. After all, the four of you were imprisoned for somebody else's crimes. I wouldn't put it past these soldiers to torture her into telling the truth."

"Daunte, what should we do?" Felicity asked. "We need to escape now, but do we take Ciana with us or not?"

Daunte looked at everyone wordlessly, ending with Ciana. The child's unmoving expression unsettled him. She wasn't crying or begging them. She wasn't screaming for help. She was simply watching them all as though she were completely detached from what was going on.

 _If we take her with us, then Tidur and Esther would never forgive us and I don't know what the Sheikh would do if he found out we kidnapped his daughter. But if we leave her here, then she might tell them everything. And even if she doesn't, they might force a confession out of her. What is the best option?_

"Daunte we need a decision!" Roen hissed. "We're running out of time!"

"I need to think about this," Daunte said, glancing over his shoulder at him.

"Daunte—" Felicity began.

"—forget this, my Lady." They all stilled at this sudden outburst. "I must warn you that your refusal for cooperation will be reported to both the Grand Citadel _and_ your husband."

"And I must warn _you_ , good sir," Tidur replied coldly. "That if you come back here making demands of me, you had better go through the proper channels and have a search warrant. You have demonstrated to me that you do _not_ have a search warrant, so you have no legal standing to come here and search my establishment. If you come back with a search warrant, then I will gladly open my doors to you. But until you do, your presence is a violation of Decree Four. Shall I recite it for you, sir?"

"That isn't necessary, my Lady. But—"

"Just leave!" Esther shouted with anger. "You broke our front door for no reason! Don't ever come back here again!"

"Why you cheeky—"

"Are you threatening my daughter, sir?" Daunte felt his pulse jump at the unexpected rage in Tidur's voice. "Are you threatening the daughter of a _Sheikh_?"

"Of course not, my Lady," another voice jumped in. "Please excuse our intrusion. But please be advised that we _will_ report this, and we _will_ come back with a search warrant."

Many footsteps retreated. Everyone throughout the room let out a collective sigh of relief, though there was still no time to relax.

 _They're going to come back, and soon._

"So I guess you guys don't need to kidnap me, then?" Ciana asked them.

Roen turned red and looked away. "Uh…"

There was a sudden knock at the door, startling all of them. "Excuse me, but may I come in?"

"S-Sure," Daunte called out. The door opened and Tidur and Esther came inside. Esther looked incredibly stressed, but Tidur was still wearing a smile. "I apologize for the commotion downstairs."

"They were going to kidnap me," Ciana told her.

The smile abruptly left Tidur's face. "Excuse me?"

Daunte knew he had a split decision to make. He could either fess up to what Ciana said, or deny everything. He saw that the other teenagers were clearly at a loss for words. Swallowing thickly, he made his decision. "I'm sorry, Ms. Tidur. She's telling the truth."

"I knew it!" Esther snapped. She rushed forward and grabbed her little sister. "You guys _are_ fugitives!"

"We escaped from the Dark Chasm," Daunte confessed, keeping his eyes on Tidur. "We mean you no trouble, ma'am. We just want to get our lives back together."

"…I see," Tidur said after a long moment. She looked at each of them in turn. "I've never seen the Dark Chasm, but I've heard plenty of unpleasant stories. I'm sorry for everything you all have suffered."

"Thank you," Daunte said sincerely.

"But how could you conceive of holding my daughter hostage? I told you yesterday that whatever is going on in your lives is none of our business. So why couldn't you trust my word on the matter?"

Daunte hesitated, but he knew that since he was already being honest that he needed to continue being honest. "Y-Your husband, ma'am."

"Sloan?" Tidur looked surprised. "What does Sloan have to do with any of this?"

"Daddy tried to kill him," Ciana said, pointing to Daunte.

" _W-What_?!" Esther cried out. She looked aghast, but Daunte also noticed that she didn't exactly look surprised.

Tidur's features relaxed slightly. "Now I understand. Because of what he did to you, and because we're his family, you came to the natural conclusion that we would turn on you. I don't blame you for your feelings. I know it means nothing, but I hope you'll accept my apology on his behalf."

"Tidur, a-are you…are you really married to the Sheikh?" Felicity asked her softly. Daunte himself could hardly believe that someone as sweet as Tidur would marry a monster like Sloan.

"Yes," Tidur said. "We've been married for twenty-two years. However we are currently estranged, and none of us have had contact with him in almost three years."

"But you're still legally married to him, right?"

"Yes." Tidur looked away. "It's not in my nature to speak about personal matters, but I don't want you to assume the worst of us. I filed for divorce through the Grand Citadel, but my request was denied. I _was_ however allowed to legally remove the three of us from his residence, and Sloan didn't object. So though we are still married on paper, we longer have contact with him. So you can be rest assured that he will not hear from us regarding this matter."

Daunte looked her right in the eye. It was hard for him to trust anybody after everything he had suffered, but he knew that Tidur wasn't lying to him.

 _But why did she go to such lengths to get away from him?_

"Do you not trust me?" Tidur asked. She'd taken his silence as disapproval. "Please, excuse me for a moment." She quickly left the room.

"Hey." Esther had approached Daunte and was looking up at him. Both Ciana and Esther looked very much like their mother, but Daunte recognized Sloan's dark eyes in Esther. He looked away. "My dad…he really tried to kill you?"

Daunte didn't answer her. But Ciana did. "Daddy beat him unconscious. He almost beat him to death, but Mr. Adalgiso stopped him."

"Oh." Esther's distress was rising in her voice. It made Daunte more uncomfortable. "I-I'm sorry."

Daunte knew he could accept her apology, but he was puzzled as to _why_ this child felt she needed to apologize on behalf of her insane father. He turned back to her. "You've done nothing wrong to me, Esther, so please don't apologize to me."

"B-But it was my dad who did that to you, wasn't it?" Esther ducked her head. "He…he can be pretty scary, can't he?"

Daunte's discomfort grew with the direction the conversation was going. Before he could reply, Tidur quickly returned to the room. "Here. This is all the money you have given me for your board. I'm returning all of it to you. That way, there is no record of you having ever been here. Please, take you money and hurry away from here before they come back."

She was giving them back _all_ their money? As admirable as that was, it didn't sit right with Daunte to just take it all back. "Ms. Tidur, I can't do that." He reached out with his right hand and gently pushed her hand away.

Very abruptly, the True Rune on Daunte's hand glowed brightly, filling the room. _No, not again!_ Daunte covered his face.

But just as suddenly, the glow was gone. Daunte lowered his hand and blinked. The room had changed. He was standing inside a small kitchen and he saw Tidur, though her back was to him. She wasn't dressed in the dark purple outfit she'd been wearing just seconds ago. The solid veil on her head was pale blue, and she wore a matching shapeless dress. Her head was bent over the counter, and it looked like she was slicing something. A pot of water was boiling on the stove.

A loud slam startled both Tidur and Daunte, and Tidur turned around. The features in her face looked more youthful now, and Daunte noticed that her mouth looked different.

 _That scar is gone._

"Sloan?" Tidur called out. She quickly left the kitchen, and Daunte felt something tug on his belly. He felt like he was being dragged after her out of the kitchen and towards the entryway. "Sloan, it _is_ you!"

Daunte's heart skipped a beat as he recognized Sloan Faakhir's large frame sitting in the entryway, removing his boots. He had pulled back his double-pointed hood, revealing messy dark brown hair on his head, but his back was to Daunte so he couldn't see his face. "Sloan, welcome home!" Tidur hurried over to her husband and hugged him from behind.

Sloan finished pulling off his boots and brusquely stood up, pulling out of her embrace. Daunte didn't miss the hurt look on her face, and she clasped her hands in front of him. "I'm still preparing dinner. Are you hungry?"

"No." Sloan's tone was emotionless and hard. He turned around to face Daunte, but his head was bent over the gloves he was pulling off.

"I-I…" Tidur looked down at the floor, as though trying to gather the nerve to say something. Then she looked back up. "Sloan, I've been worried. You've been gone for over two weeks. I understand if you have an assignment to complete, but you didn't discuss it with me. You just upped and left without a word. I've been worried for you, and so have the girls."

"I'm fine. It's nothing for you to worry about." Sloan was wearing a deep frown and stuffed his gloves under his arms. "Just leave it be, Tidur."

"But Sloan," Tidur insisted. She carefully set a hand on his thick forearm. "I'm worried these chang—"

" _I said it was nothing_!" Sloan exploded. He lashed out his right arm and struck Tidur right in the face. Tidur shrieked in alarm and pain, and Daunte jumped back as she slammed into the wall behind her. His heart slammed against the wall of his chest and he felt rage fill his being as Sloan stood over her. Daunte could see his face for the first time. His features were very masculine, and he may have been considered handsome if his expression wasn't so hard and hate-filled. Tidur had slid to the floor, holding her hands over her face. Tears had filled her eyes and blood was dripping from her mouth and into her palms.

"I told you not to worry about it," Sloan snapped at her. His fists were clenched at his sides. "I told you not to meddle in my affairs. I have a full schedule and I'm working upwards of twenty hours a day, every day of the week! All I want when I come home is for you to keep quiet and stay out of my way! Instead, you pester me and don't listen to me! Didn't I tell you not to worry about it?!" he reached out and grabbed Tidur by her collar. " _Didn't I_?!"

"Y-Yes!" she sputtered, holding her bloodied hands up defensively.

"Didn't I tell you I was fine?!"

"Yes!"

"Then why won't you just do as you're told and leave me alone, Tidur?! Or are you so stupid that you can't obey a simple request?!" Daunte thought he was going crazy, but he could've sworn there was a weird glow coming from Sloan's hand. It was almost like the glow he saw when Sloan—

"I-I'm sorry." Tidur ducked her head, but that caused her blood to drip onto his hand and over the glow. "I'm so sorry…"

Sloan jerked her body up so that he was looking her in the eye. Daunte saw real hatred in his glare. And directed at his wife! "I didn't hear you."

"I-I'm sorry!" Tidur spoke louder. She was shaking from crying and undoubtedly from fear. "P-Please Sloan—"

A sharp gasp behind Daunte caused him to turn. He saw Esther standing behind him. Or at least he thought it was Esther, because she looked younger. And she wasn't wearing a veil. "Mom?" she sounded so scared that she was whispering. "W-What…what happened?"

Sloan glared at her. "Go to your room, girl."

Esther looked at him. She was on the verge of tears and shaking from fear. "D-Daddy. I—"

"Esther." Tidur's voice became calm. She held a hand over her mouth to hide the blood. "Sweetheart, go upstairs and play with Ciana. Please."

Esther opened her mouth but quickly closed it. She looked between her parents and shifted on her feet where she stood.

"You have five seconds, girl," Sloan warned her. Tidur quickly grabbed his wrist in both hands as he began quickly counting down. "Five, four, three, tw—"

Esther took off running up the stairs. Sloan waited until he heard her door slam shut upstairs, and then turned back to Tidur. "As for you—"

A hand pressed against his forehead. Daunte blinked again, and he saw a bright light above him. The vision had ended.

And he was very aware of the fact that he was lying on the floor.

"Daunte, are you okay?!" Arin leaned over him. "Y-You suddenly fainted!"

"He looked like he went into a trance," Surya said somewhere in the room. "Even after he collapsed his eyes were open!"

The hand dropped away from his forehead and Daunte felt himself be pulled up into a sitting position. "You poor child. You've truly had a rough time of it, haven't you?"

Daunte looked at Tidur. His eyes found the scar on her chin again and his stomach turned. He looked back up at her again. "I'm sorry," he told her.

Tidur blinked in confusion. "For what?"

Daunte looked away. He knew that he'd somehow seen a memory of hers when he'd touched her hand. He remembered his own terror at being at Sloan's mercy, but that had only been for one day. Tidur and her daughters had _lived_ with Sloan, and from that memory it was clear that Sloan never shut off the insane anger inside of him.

 _That's where she got the scar from. And I just stood there and watched it happen._

It was a memory, so Daunte knew he couldn't have interfered and saved Tidur. But he still felt sick to his stomach that he just stood there and watched Sloan beat up Tidur over something so pathetically insignificant. He couldn't conceive of how a man could look at the woman he had married, and who had borne his children, and would so easily strike her and berate her just because she wanted to talk to him.

 _But this is Sloan Faakhir we're talking about. Why am I surprised by his behavior?_

Daunte forced a smile at her. "Keep the money. We'll be all right."

"Are you okay to stand, Daunte?" Felicity asked him.

"I think so." Despite this, Surya and Roen helped Daunte to his feet. His knees felt a little unsteady, but he took several deep breaths and focused his mind.

"Y-You guys should hurry," Esther said. "There's no telling when they'll be back."

"Understood. Thank you all for everything." Daunte bowed to them slightly, and the other followed suit. He checked on Arin. "Are you okay to stand?"

"I don't think he is," Ciana said. "He kept falling down when you fainted."

"Ciana!" Esther scolded her.

Arin _did_ look a little embarrassed at this revelation, but he forced a smile at Daunte. "Would you mind piggybacking me again, Brother?"

"Sure." Daunte knelt down so Arin could climb on his back. It was very reassuring that he didn't need to shrug his brother onto his back anymore.

"Please be careful, and guard your lives," Tidur said softly. "And…i-if you see my husband again, I…" she looked away.

Daunte looked at her again, and he envisioned himself smashing his tekko in Sloan's face, if for nothing else than for retribution for what he did to Tidur. "We'll be careful," he promised her.

* * *

It was busy enough in the town square, so it was relatively easy to sneak out of K'alak'i Patieba. Daunte was alarmed to see silver-robed soldiers about and they only crossed the paths of one or two, but the soldiers didn't pay them any attention.

 _They probably think we're still in our prison uniforms._

They left K'alak'i Patieba behind, and began steering themselves back into the Rocky Plains. Surya pulled out his compass and checked it. "So Baltas is _northeast_ from here, so we just have to keep steady _that_ way." He pointed to the right at a diagonal. "And we will hopefully reach the town quickly."

"We're better prepared now," Felicity said, managing a smile. "Our weapons are sharpened, and we have new clothes and armor and more supplies. It'll still be a tough trip, but I think we can handle it."

"I think so too," Daunte said, hoisting Arin up higher on his back. "Let's go."

The Rocky Plains expanded for kilometers around them, with no vegetation and no noticeable landmarks besides the different color in the ground beneath their feet marking a path in the road. Surya's compass _did_ keep them on a steady track along the road, but very so often it deviated them off the path. But it didn't last long, and they soon found the path afterwards.

There were of course plenty of monsters to engage on the Rocky Plains. They found giant rats and ant armies per usual, but they also fought bonbons, spiders the size of dogs, and wild boars. Whenever they killed a wild boar, Surya would check the animal to see whether or not it was rabid. Almost all of them were rabid, but the few that weren't Surya would skin them and collect their meat. "Boar's meat is very filling," he told them.

The sharpened weapons and light armor _did_ prove to be very beneficial, and it made fighting a little easier. They walked all day and into the night, only stopping when the moon was high in the sky.

"We'll take turns keeping watch for monsters, okay?" Surya asked. He mostly looked to Daunte though for confirmation, as though his opinion mattered most. Daunte nodded.

"Can I keep watch too?" Arin said excitedly, though he started coughing heavily again.

"You're still recovering," Daunte told him.

The boar's meat unfortunately caused stomach cramps for Daunte, but it was delicious and it _was_ filling. It gave his body much-needed energy, and he was surprised to feel content. They were fleeing for their lives and assisting a foreigner in finding his family, but their journey had a very adventurous atmosphere to it. Sleeping out in the open with his brother and friends with a bonfire and a sky full of stars…if circumstances were different, then he would've been having fun.

 _Someday. Someday I'll be able to relax and be able to go out with my friends without being in fear for my life._

They set out early the next morning, having not experienced any problems the night before. They walked into the late morning when Daunte noticed the landscape around them changing. The ground was growing lighter, and he saw sprouts of grass all over the place. He looked further ahead and saw a green valley on the horizon.

 _We're almost out of the Rocky Plains._

Surya noticed it too. "Looks like we're almost there."

"Good," Roen said. He sheathed his bolo knife and stretched his arms over his head. "As fun as this trip has been, I look forward to sleeping in an actual bed again."

"We've only been traveling since yesterday," Felicity teased him.

"Yeah, but—"

" _Freeze_!"

The four of them stopped in their tracks. From every direction, silver-robed soldiers with their heads and faces covered advanced upon them. Arin squeezed his arms around Daunte in alarm.

 _Damn. They found us._

"What is the meaning of this?" Surya demanded as they were surrounded. "We're not trespassing!"

"You're heathens who escaped your lawful punishment and _stole_ from the capital!" a soldier shouted. They all drew their swords. "You will pay for what you have done!"

Daunte's eyes darted around as he slid Arin off his back. This wasn't just a random group of soldiers. This was most likely a _battalion_ of solders. He counted at least thirty people surrounding them! He looked at the others, but they looked equally distressed.

"You have five seconds to surrender, or you'll die!" the soldier finished, pointing his blade at them.

The decision was instant. "Best Friends!" he shouted, mobilizing Roen and Felicity for their unite attack.

" _Fog of Deception_!" Surya shouted, raising his left hand. The familiar fog surrounded them, and they launched into action with their weapons ready.

It was easy to dispatch of the first ten or so soldiers. But fighting them was _very_ different from fighting the guards at the Dark Chasm. They mobilized their unite attack and Surya casted his spells from his Water Rune, but they were seriously outnumbered. No matter how many soldiers were taken down, there were still others jumping into the fray to fight. There was no time in between to regroup or to heal. Daunte quickly discovered that the True Rune's "Howl" spell only had two uses, and he used both very quickly. They were quickly becoming overwhelmed.

After fighting twenty-two soldiers, the four could no longer stand.

"Brother!" Arin had thankfully been unhurt during the excursion, and he hugged Daunte from behind. "Just leave us alone!" he shouted at the soldiers. "Le—" he had another coughing fit, but it sounded worse this time. The fighting had created quite a dust storm, and the environment was obviously having a negative effect on his health.

"So pathetic." The commander stood over them, still holding his sword. "You heathens honestly thought you stood a chance against us?" he pointed the sword at Daunte. "You. Hold out your right hand and give me the True Rune."

Arin's coughing fit was becoming more violent. Daunte ignored the other man and focused on his brother. He grabbed the canteen of water at his hip and held it to the boy's mouth. "Here, drink this."

Before Arin could, the commander stabbed his sword through the canteen. Right before Daunte's eyes water quickly gushed out of the new hole and all over the ground. "I won't tell you again, boy. Hold out your right hand, or my next strike will go through this brat's head."

"You bastard!" Roen hollered. He was knocked face-first into the dirt with a kick to his back.

Arin was still struggling to breathe. Daunte held onto his brother and glared up at the man above him. He could refuse or comply. But either way they were damned.

"Daunte, don't do it!" Surya shouted.

Daunte's arm was trembling, but he pulled it out from beneath Arin to raise it.

Suddenly a sharp whistle filled the air, startling everyone including the soldiers. "Who's there?!" the commander shouted, drawing his sword away from Daunte.

"Well, what have we here?" an unfamiliar voice replied back.

Daunte turned his head. Roughly three meters away a small group was standing there. Most of the people in the group were dressed in dark blue robes, and their faces weren't covered. A man in his mid-twenties standing front and center was dressed differently, in a long-sleeved indigo sherwani buttoned from his collar to his waist and loose black pants. Daunte saw that the man was holding a talwar sword in his right hand, though he had a casual grip on it. He looked up at the man's face and saw that he was smiling. Except…his dark green eyes did not look friendly.

"What a fine showing by the Holy Army," the man said, shaking his dark blonde head. A long ponytail swished with his head shake. "Exercising your might by beating up little kids. Why not try taking on an _adult_ with that same enthusiasm, hmm?" he took a fighting stance, holding his sword akin to a _ko gusami_ stance. The people behind him also drew their swords. "That is, if you're man enough to take me on."

"T-That's _Gunther_!" one of the soldiers shouted. "It's the Liberation Army!"

 _Liberation Army?_ Daunte wondered. He looked up at the commander and was surprised to see terror in the man's eyes.

"I-I don't know what you're doing here, but it is our duty to destroy all of you!" the man shouted finally. He gestured with his hand. "Soldiers, _now_!"

"Now?!" one soldier exclaimed. "You don't mean—!"

"It's _exactly_ what I mean," the commander said. "Do it now, all of you!"

"B-B-But if we do it, we'll _die_!" another soldier shouted.

"If you don't do it, then _I'll_ kill you!"

"This bores me," Gunther announced. He stepped out of his sword stance and casually advanced upon them. "Kids, feel free to heal up while we dispose of this garbage."

Daunte bristled as being called a "kid", but he saw Felicity frantically ruffle through the satchel with all their healing potions and passed them around. "Hurry!" she hissed.

They drank up the potions as Gunther and his group began very quickly dispatching of the remaining soldiers. Within seconds the nine soldiers had been reduced to five. This included the commander, who was fumbling with something in his pocket. The remaining four quickly followed suit.

"Are you all okay?" Gunther asked Daunte and the others. He didn't look at them, keeping his eyes on the enemy soldiers.

"Y-Yes, thank you," Daunte said. He checked on Arin and to his alarm his little brother had fallen back unconscious, having lost the strength from his coughing fits. Arin had made such progress with getting better, but now…now it looked like he had a relapse.

 _Damn it! Damn it all!_

"If we're going down, we're taking you with us!" the commander shouted. He pulled a tiny vial out and uncorked it.

Surya started, and stood up. "Hey, WAIT A MINUTE!"

The commander gulped the contents of the vial down, as did his soldiers. Within seconds all of them were gurgling and shaking. Suddenly they all shrieked. It was an inhuman sound.

"W-What the hell?!" one of Gunther's soldiers shouted.

An opposing soldier growled like a rabid animal—frothing at the mouth even—and suddenly lunged at the startled man in blue. He squeezed two hands around the other man's neck and instantly crushed his neck in his hands. Seconds later he jerked his hands up and Daunte dry-heaved as the poor man's head was ripped clean off!

" _Shit_!" Gunther shouted. He stabbed the rabid man right in the stomach with his sword, but the man didn't seem to notice. He just jumped backwards away from Gunther, and didn't even pause as his own entrails spilled out from his wound.

The other enemy soldiers were no different. Whatever they had drunk from those vials gave them inhuman strength and stamina, but they were raving lunatics in the process. Daunte jumped into the fray to help Gunther, and everyone else followed suit. The enemy was outnumbered, but it didn't matter. They put up a frightening fight and even managed to kill three of Gunther's men.

Daunte was scared, _truly_ scared. He'd dealt with devilish people before, but not on this scale. The enemy soldiers were fatally stabbed, shocked with a Lightning Rune, and burned with a Fire Rune, and they shrugged off all of this like it was nothing. It wasn't normal at all, and Daunte had no idea how they were supposed to stop them.

It felt like forever, but really only five minutes passed before the tide of the fight changed. The commander raised bloodied hands to strike again, but suddenly grabbed at his own throat. He fell face-down into the dirt and began convulsing violently. The sounds he emitted were much worse than the growling and screaming he'd done before. He was gurgling and wheezing, rolling around in the dirt as he scratched at his own neck. All around them the other four soldiers similarly fell to the dirt and convulsed. Daunte and the others could do nothing but stare in shock.

Then, just as suddenly, their bodies stilled on the ground and they did not move again.

"…Whoa," Gunther breathed. "That…was something new." He bent down to clean his sword on the dead commander's robes before sheathing it and turning to his own men. "Are you guys all right?"

Daunte checked on Arin, and he was thankful that the insane soldiers had left him alone. But Arin hadn't stirred despite the violent fighting and screaming. A hard lump formed in his throat and he hugged his little brother. _Damn it all. How can I ever help him if we keep ending up in these situations?!_

"We can't take them back with us," Gunther said, checking on his own fallen soldiers. "We're too far away from home. It's unfortunate, but we'll have to bury them here."

Daunte wanted to thank him for saving them, but he felt just saying the words would be an empty gesture. He cradled Arin to him and stood up. "W-Would you like us to help you?"

Gunther looked surprised. "Really? I would appreciate it."

"I saved my bag of tools from the Dark Chasm," Felicity said, hoisting up her bag. "So hopefully we can help."

"Dark Chasm?!" Gunther went pale and quickly approached Daunte. "You guys escaped from the _Dark Chasm_?!"

"Yes, we did," Roen said. Behind him, Surya was examining one of the vials the soldiers had drunk from. "What about it?"

"No, there's nothing wrong with you escaping! In fact, it'd be great if _more_ of you kids were able to get out!" Gunther shook his head and laughed a little. "Oh man, you guys would be perfect for us!"

"For you?" Daunte said. "For what?"

Gunther pressed a hand over his own heart. "My name is Gunther. I'm a lieutenant in Nagarea's Liberation Army. We'd been hearing some rumors about happenings near the Dark Chasm, so I volunteered to check them out. But now that I see that the rumors revolved around escapees, I think you guys would be perfect recruits!"

"Recruits?" Roen said. Surya wasn't adding to the conversation, still looking into the vial.

"Sure! Our mission is to overthrow our corrupt government. You guys are a symbol of what the corruption has done to this country. Wouldn't you guys like to get revenge on the government for what they did to you? For what they did to your families?"

Roen hesitated. "But we—"

"Yes," Felicity interrupted, approaching them. "I want to avenge my father. I've wanted to ever since I was convicted."

"Guys?" Roen interjected. "Can we have a talk please?!"

"Go ahead," Gunther told them. "We still have to bury our comrades so we have time to spare. But since we also just wiped out an entire battalion, there's bound to be more soldiers coming."

Daunte regrouped with his friends. "Guys, what are we going to do?!" Roen hissed. "We can't join the Liberation Army! They're terrorists!"

"They're fighting against the Theocracy," Felicity said. "So that already makes them better in my book!"

"B-But they attack government buildings! There's been plenty of collateral damage because of their policies! They might be against the government, but what really makes them any better than the people who imprisoned us?! Their actions haven't stopped innocent lives from being lost, have they?!"

"That…is a good point," Felicity admitted reluctantly. "But Gunther just saved us and hasn't asked us for anything in return. He didn't even demand our joining the army. If the rest of the Army has the same integrity as him, then they're already better than the Theocracy!"

"I have a feeling."

The trio looked at Surya. He looked up from the vial. "I have a feeling about what those men drank, but I can't be for sure. However, if we offer our services to this Liberation Army, then I'll definitely have a hell of an easier time finding my family. I can understand your apprehension with trusting them, if they've really done the terrible things you've said they've done. But sometimes it's better to choose the lesser of two evils, wouldn't you say?"

Daunte hesitated. Gunther's offer _did_ seem too good to be true, but truthfully he hadn't exactly heard good stories about the Liberation Army. Despite wanting to free the country from the Theocracy, their revolution didn't exactly shy from staging violent confrontations in packed streets. Plenty of people who weren't even involved on either side have died because of these excursions.

 _But…do we really have any choice? The Theocracy will still kill us, and I don't know how to make Arin better. If the Liberation Army has a doctor as good as Dr. Yulin, then maybe…_

Daunte left his friends and approached Gunther. "My brother is very sick. He was getting better but he just had a relapse. Do you have any doctors that can care for him?"

"Of course we do," Gunther said. "Clara is one of the best. She's also very pretty." He laughed to himself.

"If she can help Arin, then…then I'll join you guys."

"Good! Welcome aboard!" Gunther slapped him on the shoulder.

"I'll join you too!" Felicity chimed in, hurrying over.

"So will I," Roen said, though his tone was reluctant.

"My name is Surya Falenas from Falena," Surya said, tucking the vial into his pocket as he approached. "What has the Liberation Army heard about regarding the abductions of my family?"

"Wow, a real Falenean!" Gunther exclaimed. He reached out and shook Surya's hand. "I've heard rumors about missing Faleneans, but our leader would know more than me."

"I see," Surya said. "And what's your leader's name?"

"Bearyl Lutis. After we're finished here we'll set off for our headquarters and I'll introduce you guys to him."

"Thank you," Daunte said. He let out a short breath and looked down at Arin. _So, Arin. We're part of the Liberation Army…again._

* * *

In the Grand Citadel in Mlkwt Alsmwat, the Blessed Chamber was a mortar-shaped room filled with a mortar-shaped table with ten seats. All ten seats were filled with individuals dressed in pristine white robes, with large emblems on their chests and pronounced double-horns on their hoods.

The Cabinet of High Clerics had come to order.

"We have received confirmation that the True Rune was found," Kayanu began, looking at the documents before him. "But the boy who the True Rune selected has disappeared, along with Prince Surya."

"Which matters little," Hayato interjected. "Falenean Princes have no real value as hostages anyway. But since he _is_ the son of the Commander of the Queen's Knights, he will surely make a nuisance of himself."

"If the prince has aligned himself with the brat who stole the True Rune, then they may seek out Bearyl Lutis for assistance," Yuuto warned. "And if that happens, Lutis will no doubt take advantage of the situation and try and secure an alliance with Falena."

"You've giving Lutis too much credit," Kayanu said. "Remember that he used to work for us and all of us have met him at least once. He has the charisma to be a leader, but remember that he founded the Liberation Army three years ago. The fact that he is no closer now to reaching his goal than he was when he was defrocked should say more about his leadership and strategizing skills than anything else."

"So we don't have to worry about a potential alliance," Yuuto said. He nodded curtly. "That's reassuring. This plot with the royal family is well over a decade in the making so we have to be sure that nothing gets in our way. But even if Lutis potentially fumbles with the Falenean Prince, he may end up recruiting the child with the True Rune. He would be an idiot _not_ to."

"I find it hard to believe that the child slipped through _her_ grasp," Ziya quipped up. "Or maybe _she_ isn't as great as she claimed?"

"Would you like to level this accusation at her?" Kayanu asked him.

Ziya shrank into himself slightly. "N-No."

"I have received word that Unit Twelve of the Southeastern Corps has been completely wiped out in the Rocky Plains," Izanagi reported. "That's thirty men lost. The Liberation Army may have had a hand in it."

"Most likely," Kayanu agreed. "I can't imagine the child wielding the True Rune could kill thirty men. Although since this _did_ happen in the Rocky Plains, it's very likely the children came across the soldiers."

"Did the soldiers take… _that_?"

Everyone stilled, and looked to the end of the circle. The Cleric sitting there had the exact same rank as all of them, but he was very clearly an intimidating man and thus had a little more political sway than the rest of them.

"Yes, Takefute," Izanagi said, looking at his own documents. "We've confirmed that five of them, including the Unit Commander, took their Raging Nostrum. However we didn't find any other bodies in the area, so they did not completely destroy whatever enemy they engaged."

"Idiots," Takefute said. "Wasting something as valuable as _Raging Nostrum_ on their worthless bodies, and not even being successful at killing their enemies? The worms who serve within the Holy Army are barely useful as cannon fodder, much less as active soldiers."

"The area was searched, and there was no traces of the boy _or_ the True Rune," Izanagi finished.

"I'm not surprised. The boy was smart enough to steal the True Rune when he had the chance, so he will undoubtedly keep moving to avoid capture."

"But we've confirmed that the tablet was correct," Kayanu said. "So that's a start. We just need to get the True Rune before the boy can learn how to properly control it."

"It is doubtful he will ever know the power he has," Takefute said. "This is the first True Rune ever discovered in Nagarea. Even if the power it holds is not the kind that will serve us best militarily…the _Rune of Restoration_ will still surely give us status paralleled to that of Harmonia."


	7. Chapter One: Part Seven

Part Seven

Daunte was thankful that Gunther had arrived in the Rocky Plains on horseback, as it meant that they didn't have to do so much walking anymore. With three of Gunther's soldiers dead there were three available horses. Daunte shared a horse with Arin, Roen and Felicity shared a horse, and Surya got his own horse.

"Our headquarters is north of here, just southeast of the Northern Wharf," Gunther told them. "We have to be careful crossing the _Bridge of Faith_ , but it won't take us long to get there."

"The Bridge of Faith?" Surya asked.

"It's the only bridge that has been allowed to be built over Golden River," Felicity told him. "It's a blessed bridge so it's guarded to prevent monsters from crossing it, but we might get the attention of the guards on it."

"We'll be fine," Gunther reassured her, giving her a wink. "Twenty-thousand people cross the Bridge of Faith every day, since it cuts travel time by half so people don't have to walk all the way around Winter Hill to get to the Northern provinces. _We_ use the bridge all the time and have never been caught, so the rest of you should be fine."

"How come those soldiers we fought knew who you were on sight?" Surya asked him.

Gunther shrugged. "The hell if I know. Some freak out when they see me, others don't bat an eyelash. I guess it depends on which soldiers actually pay attention to bulletins regarding the Liberation Army."

They rode northwest towards Golden River to reach the Bridge of Faith. Daunte looked to the northeast and sighed softly. Baltas was in the opposite direction, and this side trip might make things more difficult for Surya in finding his family.

 _But we agreed to join the Army, and I want Arin to be in a safe place._

When they reached Golden River and walked along side it to reach the Bridge of Faith, Surya's brow furrowed. "Daunte."

"What is it?"

"This looks exactly like the Feitas."

"Feitas?"

"The Feitas River flows through multiple routes all throughout Falena. The water in this river looks exactly like the Feitas."

Daunte didn't realize that rivers had a distinction that even allowed them to look remotely different, but he shrugged. "Maybe the Feitas and Golden River were connected at one point? I know Golden River is partially dried up because of the Great Earthquake."

"That must be it," Surya said.

There were very few encounters with monsters on the road towards the Bridge of Faith, and the few encounters were easy battles. Gunther was an exceptionally skilled swordsman, making his motions seem effortless. There were various times though that when Gunther rushed in to make the kill, he jumped back clutching an object in his left. "500 bits," he said once, tossing the bag at Daunte. Another time it was medical herb.

"Wow, you're getting quite a bit of loot!" Roen exclaimed as Gunther snatched up a rune scroll from a pompon.

"Having a Hunter Rune has its perks," Gunther said, tapping the back of his left hand as he continued riding.

 _Hunter Rune?_ Daunte looked at Surya, but the other boy shrugged. "I've never seen one before, but apparently it's a rune that makes _stealing_ a bit easier."

Daunte snorted, and continued riding. Arin was still asleep against him, his small body bobbing with the motions of the horse. Seeing his brother's poor state was a bigger incentive for Daunte to ride faster.

Several hours later, they spotted the Bridge of Faith. As it was a bridge over a river titled 'Golden River', the stone bridge had been painted a brilliant golden color. They were three kilometers away but they could see the golden bridge glittering in the waning sunlight. And even with dusk approaching, they could see people milling across the bridge from both directions.

The Army soldiers quickly changed out of their blue robes, revealing simpler outfits. Daunte looked at Gunther, who shrugged. "The Liberation Army uniform is dark blue. We can't be wearing those colors across the bridge, can we?"

Daunte looked down at Arin again. It occurred to him then that the soldiers would be looking around for sickly children to find them. He shook the child, but Arin didn't stir.

"Daunte, what's wrong?" Felicity steered her horse beside his.

"If I ride onto the bridge with Arin looking like this, they'll suspect something," Daunte said.

"You have a point," Gunther said. "You need to wake the child up and have him sit behind you. He'll need to stay conscious throughout the crossing or his condition will draw attention to us. And if they stop us they'll ask for our identification books. My men and I all have forged identification books, but do any of you have any?"

Daunte's head snapped up. Identification books. He'd completely forgotten about them. Even before he was sentenced to the Dark Chasm, all Nagarean citizens were required to carry identification books that had their name, social rank or job title clearly listed inside with a photograph. Identification books were checked at all Garrisons and security checkpoints. A lot of businesses didn't sell wares to people if they didn't have their books on hand.

 _Nobody in_ _K'alak'i Patieba asked for our books, and I never saw the guards in the Dark Chasm carry them. How could I have forgotten about them?!_ He looked at Roen and Felicity and saw that their faces were pale. They had also forgotten about the identification books.

"Well, there's no way around it now," Gunther said, shaking his head. "We'll just have to get by the Bridge of Faith and get to headquarters. We have a forger who can make you your own identification books. Hang on." Gunther jumped off his horse and was fiddling with something in his pocket. "I was going to send the Commander a message anyway that I was bringing new recruits, but I'll also send Gizli a message to prepare five identification books for when we arrive. I'll be back!" he took off running.

"Arin, wake up!" Daunte said, shaking his brother a little harder. "I know it's difficult, but I need you to wake up! Arin!"

Arin groaned, and he opened his eyes partially. "B—Brother? What happened?"

"You're going to be okay," Daunte told him. "But I need you to stay awake until we're finished crossing the Bridge of Faith."

"He's still very pale," Felicity said. Roen directed their horse next to Daunte's and she reached out. "Here, he can't look so sick." She began quickly pinching Arin's cheeks.

"Ow, ow—Felicity, what are you doing?" Arin gurgled out. He raised his hands as if he wanted to swat her hands away, but didn't have the strength to.

"Giving you rosy cheeks, Arin," Felicity told him. "If the guards see you looking as pale as you do now, they'll stop us and arrest us again."

The pinching worked, but Arin's cheek were a darker red than Daunte liked. "Stop, Felicity. That's enough."

Felicity quickly drew back. "I-I'm sorry. I got carried away."

"Well it looks like he has rosacea now," Roen teased.

"I can't feel my cheeks, Brother," Arin complained quietly.

"You'll be all right." Daunte wiped the sweat from his brow with his sleeve. "Just hang on and stay awake. I know it will be exhausting, but I need you to stay awake until we cross the Bridge of Faith."

"O-Okay."

Surya snorted suddenly, and Daunte looked at him. The teenager shook his head. "You guys just remind me of the stories my aunt used to tell me. I'm an only child, but my father is the older brother to the Queen. Aunt Lym use to tell me how my dad doted on her and spoiled her rotten when she was a kid. He even let her get away with stuff my grandparents wouldn't allow!" he laughed again.

"I…I'm not spoiling Arin," Daunte said defensively.

"I know," Surya told him. "But you're a good big brother. My father led a civil war almost thirty years ago in order to rescue Aunt Lym from usurpers. It's easy to see that you would also go to great lengths to save your brother…and you have."

"I'm back," Gunther announced, hurrying back over to them. "I sent the message to headquarters. Unless it gets intercepted—which I doubt it will—then Lord Bearyl will know we're coming. And Gizli will hopefully have five identification books for you guys when we arrive."

"Then let's hurry," Surya said. "I also want to speak with your Commander."

"As you wish, Prince." Gunther climbed into his saddle. But Surya stiffened and reached for his tri-nunchaku. "Who told you I was a prince?"

"Well your surname is Falenas, right?" Gunther asked him. "And you're from Falena. So, Falenas, Falena—your country is named after your family. Or vice versa, I don't know. But it was easy to figure out."

"…I see." Surya relaxed his hand away from his weapon. "But I'd rather be identified by my knight's rank, not my royal rank."

"Understandable. Are we ready to go?"

"One second," Daunte said. He looked Arin in the eye. The boy's eyes were still half-lidded, but he was conscious. "Are you ready, Arin?"

"Yes, D-Daunte." The boy coughed briefly, but he shook it off. Roen helped Daunte shift Arin around in the saddle so that the boy was positioned behind him, arms grasped around his waist.

"Okay, are we ready now?" Gunther asked. "Remember, we have to get this right on the first try. There are no redo's."

"I'm ready now," Daunte said. He looked at the others. "Are you guys ready?"

"Let's go," Felicity said, nodding.

Daunte tried not to look nervous as they steered their horses towards the Bridge of Faith. He was able to relax a little more as they merged onto the path behind thirty to forty travelers. With more people on the road it would draw less attention to them.

 _But there's not a lot of people on horseback, so we might get attention because of it._

He kept his breathing steady, but his hands trembled around the reins and his heart was pounding in his throat as the dirt road ended and the gold cobblestone road of the bridge began. He looked ahead and saw that the soldiers were just aimlessly watching the travelers going by. They weren't stopping every single traveler to check them for identification books. He kept his eyes forward and didn't make eye-contact with anyone. _Stay calm. Stay calm…_

They boarded the Bridge of Faith without incident. But the bridge itself was twelve meters wide and thirty meters long. There were two sets of sidewalks along the sides of the bridge for travelers on foot, and down the center travelers on horseback and in carts could ride. It was a shorter distance compared to how far they'd already traveled, but it felt like an eternity. But they kept calm dispositions, and maintained a steady trot with their horses.

 _Stay calm. Stay calm._ Daunte kept repeating the mantra to himself. There were small guard towers on opposite sides of the bridge every six meters, and he tried not to look up at them. Arin's grip around his waist was still strong, but the boy's breathing against his breath was weak. "Are you okay?" he asked him, looking over his shoulder.

"I-I'm okay, Brother," Arin replied quietly. His face was hidden in Daunte's back so Daunte couldn't see him. "I-I…I'm trying not to cough."

"Just a little while longer." Daunte looked forward. They continued to make their way down the Bridge of Faith and he was inwardly amazed that they hadn't garnered any attention yet. After all, Surya was still in his Falenan clothes and the guards of the bridge _had_ to have known about the kidnapping of the royal family.

 _They can't be so dense…can they?_ He spared a glance at a guard tower as he passed it. The two guards on top were carrying on a conversation and not even keeping watch. One of them burst into loud laughter. Daunte looked away. _I guess Gunther was right. Some soldiers in the Holy Army pay attention to bulletins….and others don't._

"—really true?" a boy walking on the path asked his mother. "A filthy heretic stole from the Grand Citadel?"

Daunte tried not to stiffen. He kept his eyes forward as the mother replied. "That's what the report said. What's worse, the thief ran away from his rightful punishment in the Dark Chasm! Truly a traitor to Nagar himself!"

"Spare me," another woman scoffed. "What child deserves to be sentenced to a place so dangerous that _grown men_ were barred from working there?"

"You!" a guard shouted, rounding upon the woman. "Are you speaking against the government?! Are you a heathen?! Show me your identification book!"

"I-I wasn't—I—" the woman quickly ducked her head as she handed over her book. "They're meaningless ramblings, sir. Forgive me."

The guard read the book and snarled at her, but he threw it to the ground at her feet and stepped away. "I _thought_ so."

Daunte locked his jaw. He was angry with the mother for her thoughtless dismissal of the suffering they had endured, but with how the guard overreacted to the woman who had stood up for the children of the Dark Chasm, he couldn't help but wonder if the mother meant what she said…or if she was saying the things she said because that was what was _expected_ of her.

 _Mother taught me that the Nagarist religion welcomes free speech. That woman wasn't speaking against the religion but against the policies of our government. How is suppressing her feelings in line with the Nagarist religion? I-I know Original Sin is a lie, but that was built around people committing crimes. Are…has Original Sin extended to such that people who express disagreement with the Theocracy are considered inherently evil?_

Daunte kept the guard in his line of vision to make sure he didn't go back to harass the woman. If the man did, Daunte was afraid he would react with violence.

" _Lanny_!" a guard suddenly shouted jovially. Daunte looked to his right and saw ten guards rush over to a youth dressed in the same silver robes they were. The boy's back was to Daunte, but he could see sandy brown bangs sticking out from his hood. By the boy's size he had to be at least thirteen years old. "Long time no see! Is the _Sheikh_ trusting you to run errands by yourself now?"

Daunte sucked in a sharp breath when they said the word "Sheikh". But Lanny replied, "Sheikh Umed sent me to the capital and I've returned with emergency news. So unfortunately I can't stay too long."

"Aw, can't you stay just a little while longer? You were just a squire the last time we saw you!"

"I'm _still_ a squire, remember?" Lanny reminded them irritably. "And you guys all saw me just days ago! I can't stay, I must—"

"Oh, you sound too responsible!" One of the guards put Lanny in a headlock and began giving him a noogie right on top of his hood. "Just shirk your responsibilities this once!"

"Ow, stop it! I have to get going!" but the guards just laughed at his protests.

 _He said 'Umed', so he doesn't serve Sloan Faakhir._ Daunte let out the breath he was holding. The guards on this side of the Bridge of Faith had become distracted by the young soldier, so that helped to alleviate his stress even more. _These guys…almost seem normal._

It seemed like forever, but they final reached the other side of the bank and the end of the bridge. "On my cue, we'll ride off," Gunther told them in a soft but quick tone. "Luckily the morons guarding this side of the bridge were distracted by that kid."

"Right," Surya responded.

The cue came quicker than Daunte expected. The path turned from the golden cobblestones to dirt when Gunther suddenly whistled. Within seconds he was galloping away with the rest of the soldiers and Daunte and the others scrambled to keep up. Daunte was riding so fast and hard that he became aware that Arin's grip on him had loosened. He grabbed Arin's arm with one hand and locked it around him, forcing the child to continue hanging on.

It wasn't until the Bridge of Faith was completely out of sight and they were in an expansively green meadow that they stopped. "We did it!" Gunther cheered, dismounting. "You guys did a great job!" his soldiers also climbed off their horses and proceeded to change back into their Army uniforms.

Daunte quickly slid off his horse and checked on Arin. The child swayed in the saddle and his eyes were half-lidded. "I-I feel dizzy," he moaned.

"You did great," Daunte told him. Roen hurried over to help Arin off the horse. "You can rest now. We're safe."

"Not quite yet," Gunther interjected. "We won't be safe until we reach headquarters, but we _can_ stop for a short while."

"I hope I don't sound offensive," Surya said suddenly. "But it sounds like your government suppresses free speech." Daunte remembered the confrontation they had witnessed and he shifted with discomfort.

"It didn't use to be _that_ bad," Gunther said. "But…yes. Recently the Theocracy has instituted policies that they claim are supposed to root out "heretics"." He waggled his fingers in a quotation mark gesture. "They've encouraged people to pay attention to what their neighbors say and if they speak blasphemously to report them."

"Blasphemously?" Felicity echoed. "But isn't that already a crime?"

"Oh, this is a different sort of blaspheming. It's not just limited to those who speak ill of the Nagarist Faith. If you say anything negative against the High Clerics or against any of the Holy Decrees—such as Original Sin—then you're committing blasphemy."

"That's outrageous!" Roen snapped, standing up. "Our Theocracy may be in direct service of Nagar, but they aren't on the same level as a _deity_! Our Scriptures strictly state that we can speak against each other! That we must be honest in hearts! The High Clerics are at the top of the caste system, but they are the same as us, and thus are open to ridicule and criticism! This new policy of blasphemy is a direct violation of our Scriptures!"

"It's not the only direct violation," Felicity muttered.

"And thus, _we_ exist to get rid of greedy, murderous hypocrites," Gunther said. He smiled at them toothily. "Don't we already sound better by comparison?"

"How long before we reach your headquarters?" Surya asked him.

"Well it's almost nightfall, so we're going to stop for the night," Gunther said. "It'd be too dangerous to ride at night. But we'll start riding again in the morning."

Surya sighed shortly and pulled his bag from his horse. "I was hoping to be in Baltas by now. What if one of my cousins is there, but they get moved by tomorrow?"

"We should try and reach out to the Liberation Army," Felicity suggested softly. "We're willing to do all we can to help you, Surya, but the Army will probably be more useful to us."

"M-Maybe the Army can liberate the Dark Cha—" Arin was overcome with another coughing fit.

"Hey," Roen said suddenly. "If the Liberation Army is supposed to be the antithesis of the Theocracy, then how come they haven't tried to save anybody in the Dark Chasm?"

That was actually a good question, and it made Daunte really wonder. What was the point of being called a "Liberation Army" if you weren't doing any liberating?

"Maybe…they don't have enough manpower?" Felicity offered, though she looked perplexed as well

"Are you guy's hungry?" Gunther obliviously came over to them. "We still have some leftover—"

"Gunther, why hasn't the Liberation Army liberated the Dark Chasm?" Roen asked him.

Gunther looked startled by the question. He looked at each of them in silence for a long moment before he forced a smile. "I've served with the Army for two years, Roen, and I can tell you that though we fight on the side of righteousness…we're severely understaffed."

"But—"

"We're perfectly capable of staging minor skirmishes, but we don't have enough power to attack full-fledged army units. While I understand your feelings, can you possibly imagine what would happen if we stormed the Dark Chasm? The entire Southeastern Division would rise against us, followed by the Northeast and Southwest Divisions. As much as we hate what's going on there, you have to understand the risks that we would have to take in order to take on such a campaign. And there's a very real possibility that we would lose what little army we already have if we go there now."

"Did Bearyl Lutis tell you this?" Felicity asked him.

"…No," Gunther said at length. "I'm just speaking in practical terms. But if you want to bring your concerns to the Lord Commander when you meet him, you're more than welcome to do so."

 _Then I will,_ Daunte decided. He could understand Gunther's reasoning about why the Liberation Army couldn't simply storm the Dark Chasm, but he didn't like that the Army wasn't doing anything for them anyway.

 _I'm sure that what Gunther is saying is true, but I still want to speak with Bearyl Lutis about this. I want to be practical about what the Army is capable of, but I don't want to feel like I'm not doing anything for the children that are still trapped there._

Arin began coughing again, and Daunte tended to him in silence. _Still, Arin needs a safe place to rest and get better, and the Liberation Army's headquarters is probably the only place I can take him to. I guess all I can do is trust in Gunther…and trust in Bearyl Lutis._

* * *

The group was up and ready to go before sunrise the following morning. Surya casted another _Kindness Drops_ spell on Arin, which helped to clear the boy's breathing but Daunte was distressed about his weakening condition. _The ambush yesterday was very stressful. Didn't Dr. Yulin used to tell us not to dwell on stress because it would make our bodies sick? Did the stress from yesterday contribute to Arin's relapse?_

There was no use dwelling on it, though. Daunte knew that. He settled Arin into the saddle and climbed on behind him. All he could do was follow Gunther and get Arin to the Army headquarters as quick as possible.

Luckily, they only had to ride for three more hours. Then they reach a grove of thick trees. There was a path in the forest, but it was an uneven path that was heavily overgrown. They carefully guided their horses deep into the forest. No monsters crossed their path and the forest itself seemed peaceful. It was a pleasant surprise.

After riding for a little bit, Gunther slid off his horse and grabbed his horse's bridle. "The road starts getting ready tricky here, so we'll need to guide our horses the rest of the way to headquarters."

Daunte slid off his horse with the others and carefully positioned Arin so that the boy wouldn't fall out of the saddle. Then they followed Gunther down the path. Daunte kept tripping over overgrown roots in the ground, but he shook it off and kept a steady course.

After a half-hour of walking, the path expanded out and the trees disappeared. To his left there was a long line of horses tied to a long post. In front of them was an overgrown stone staircase that spiraled up a hill. At the top of the hill was a stone castle. One of the watchtowers of the castle had collapsed, but the structure itself looked stable. And secure.

"Lieutenant Gunther!" a soldier in blue called out to them. "Are those new recruits I see with you?"

"You bet!" Gunther called back to him as they led their horses to the post. "Is the Commander available?"

"He should be. He's in the war room on the top floor."

"Thanks." Gunther turned to the others. "I'll introduce you guys to my Lord, but first things first. We'll need to go down and meet Gizli to get your identification books. Then I'll take you guys to the infirmary so we can leave Arin in Clara's care."

"Can we go to the infirmary first?" Daunte asked him, shrugging Arin onto his back.

"Gizli will need to take Arin's picture in order to finish his identification book," Gunther reminded him. "It won't take long, I promise."

Daunte nodded reluctantly. They followed Gunther up the winding steps and into the castle. To Daunte's befuddlement, random soldiers and civilians even began approaching the group to engage them in conversation.

"New recruits? You're most welcome here!"

"Make sure to stop up and see the Commander!"

"The Commander's new strategist is a lazy-looking foreigner! But don't let his looks fool you, he's very intelligent and has a lot of foresight!"

"The Theocracy seems to be in a panic lately! It's because of _us_ , isn't it?"

"Sweet Nagar! Allise is the most beautiful woman I've ever seen! But no matter how many times I ask her out, she keeps turning me down!" the soldier clutched at his heart dramatically.

"Maybe you should take the hint the first time she rejects you?" Gunther interjected suddenly, taking Daunte by surprise. But almost immediately Gunther bounced away and hurried over to a young woman standing nearby. "There you are! I've been looking all over for you!"

"It seems…laidback here," Felicity observed, but she was smiling.

Surya shrugged. "You'll find most castles are surprisingly laidback."

"Maybe they could channel this energy into something productive," Roen grumbled.

Daunte glanced at him. He thought about agreeing with him or telling him to be quiet. He finally decided on, "Give it a rest. We can't expect these people be on alert 24/7. They'll exhaust themselves before an enemy attacks."

"Daunte's right," Felicity added. "You're not giving these guys a chance, Roen."

"…All right," Roen relented, nodding.

"I _knew_ you would be perfect here!" Gunther laughed, returning to the group. He tugged on Daunte's arm. "Come on, let's go downstairs. Gizli's in the lower level."

"Gunther, where have you been?" another young lady approached him, pouting. Daunte mentally noted that it was a different woman than before.

"Ah," Gunther said, stroking her cheek. "I could never stay away from _you_."

"And we're going downstairs," Surya announced, pushing past Gunther towards the stairs leading down into the lower levels.

"Hey, wait for me!" Gunther shouted, hurrying after him. But Daunte couldn't help but notice that several women approached Gunther during their descent to squeal at him or beg for his attention. Gunther addressed every single one of them the same way—charming smile, sweet words, and the occasional chaste kiss.

 _How many girlfriends does this guy have?!_ Daunte wondered incredulously.

"You're very popular, Gunther," Felicity pointed out.

"I have quite a following here," Gunther said. "My good looks and charm has earned me quite a few fans. Nothing but friendly acquaintances, of course"

"Really? You have _sixteen_ platonic fans here?" Surya asked him. "And all of them just happen to be pretty girls?"

Gunther grinned at him wickedly. "Who knew such a cultured prince like yourself could spare to have his mind in the gutter?"

Surya quickly grabbed for his tri-nunchaku. Daunte snorted, and almost held his tongue because he was sure it would be hilarious to see Surya whack Gunther across the head with his tri-nunchaku. But he recovered himself and shook his head at Surya. Luckily Surya saw his gesture and dropped his hand.

Thankfully, it wasn't too long before they were at the bottom floor—which resembled a cave—and Gunther directed them over to a room with an open door. Daunte saw above the door was a sign that had a magnifying glass on it. "Gizli!" Gunther knocked on the doorframe. "We're here! Do you have those identification books done?"

"Of course not!" a loud voice boomed from inside the room, startling the four teenagers. "Do you expect me to forge five books in less than a day, when I don't even know what my clients look like?!"

"That's your cue," Gunther said, gesturing them inside.

Daunte shrugged Arin higher onto his back and led the way into the room. There was a lantern hanging from the ceiling, and there was a long counter to his left. A head peeked out from behind the counter briefly and then disappeared. Then a full body abruptly stood up. "So, you're the children Gunther wrote to me about? You're a sorry-looking lot, aren't you?"

Daunte sized up the woman in front of him. She looked to be in her late-fifties to early-sixties and her blue eyes were strikingly pale. She wore her long silver hair in a ponytail so loose Daunte wondered why she even bothered tying it back. The solid brown veil on her head was an unflattering color, but her tunic and pants were the same color and it served to give her a very dull appearance.

 _But if she's the forger, then she probably wouldn't dress to attract attention to herself._

"All right, come over here." Gizli waved a gnarled hand at them and directed them towards the back of the room. A white sheet was hanging from the wall in front of a tripod and large camera. "It's 5,000 bits per book. You have the money, right?"

"5,000 bits?!" Roen cried out, aghast. "For _one picture and book_?!"

"Forgery is a crime punishable by death," Gizli told him harshly. "Do you know what they do to forgers, boy? It's not a pretty sight. My job comes with a great deal of risk, so I don't charge lightly."

"B-But we don't have that kind of money!" Felicity sputtered. She looked over her shoulder at Gunther.

"Then we're wasting our time." Gizli scoffed and stalked back over to behind the counter.

"Gizli, did you actually read the letter I sent you?" Gunther asked from the doorway. "Or did you skim it like you skim everything? Or is your eyesight failing you with age?"

"My eyesight is _fine_ , boy," Gizli snapped at him. "And I read enough of your ridiculous letter to get what was important."

"Oh, really? Then you know these kids escaped the Dark Chasm and have virtually nothing?"

"Of course I—" Gizli stiffened and looked up. Her hardened face softened slightly. "The Dark Chasm. The five of you escaped the Dark Chasm?"

" _Yes_ ," Daunte said irritably. "But my brother is very ill and needs to see the doctor here. If you're not going to finish our books then just say so, because I'm in a hurry."

"I-I didn't. I…" Daunte was taken by surprise by how stricken the older woman had become. She stood her head and straightened. "Please accept my apologies. I've dealt with so many idiots who whine at me for books and then so _easily_ lose them that I was thoughtless with my words with you."

"It's fine," Daunte said. "We'll pay you back when we—"

"No." Gizli waved a hand. "Keep your money. Consider this a curtesy, since I've given you none."

"Ho," Gunther huffed from the door. "So you _are_ capable of being nice?"

"Be quiet!" Gizli snapped at him. "Okay, which one of you wants to go first?"

They decided Arin would go first, and gently woke the boy up so he would have a clear picture. He still seemed dazed and confused though, and barely reacted to the flash as Gizli took his picture. It was a bright flash though, and after three pictures Daunte was seeing spots in his vision.

 _Whatever I need to do to not draw attention towards myself, I'll do it._

"Good," Gizli said after the final picture was taken. "Give me time to develop these, and I'll have your books ready."

Even though she was offering to do it free of charge, and even though she'd been incredibly rude to them when they'd arrived, it didn't sit right with Daunte for her to have her do so much work for nothing. After thinking about it, he pulled a bag out of his pockets and tossed it on the table. "Would 500 bits be okay?"

"I told you that you don't have to pay me," Gizli told him as she gathered the negatives to print.

"But please still accept some form of payment from us."

"Isn't that the money I gave you that I took from a monster?" Gunther asked lightly.

Gizli eyed the small bag on the counter, and after a moment she snatched it up. "…Thanks."

" _Thanks_?!" Gunther spat incredulously. "In the name of Nagar! The grass is going to turn blue and the sky will fall! Gizli actually said _thanks_?!"

Felicity and Roen laughed, and Surya even snorted slightly. Gizli glared murderously at Gunther. "If you don't get out of here, brat, I'll appraise the next rare item you bring me into a worthless lump of coal!"

"Appraise?" Daunte asked, looking at Gunther.

"Gizli may be a forger, but her day job is as an appraiser," Gunther explained. "If you happen to find any…weird items that you don't know the function or worth of, she'll appraise it for a small fee."

Gizli shrugged. "Once the Liberation Army wins this war, there will be no point in being a forger. It's good money now, but I'll need to have a more plausible trade in the long run."

"If you survive the long run," Gunther muttered.

Gizli shouted, and grabbed something from underneath the counter and threw it at Gunther. But Gunther ran before it hit him, and it shattered against the door frame. "You owe me a new flower urn, you damned brat!"

"Uh, let's go," Daunte said. He bowed to Gizli. "Thank you for your help."

"Whatever." She waved a dismissive hand.

"Is everybody crazy here?!" Roen hissed as they hurried from Gizli's workspace.

"I'm enjoying it," Felicity admitted cheerfully.

* * *

The infirmary was back up the stairs but not on the main ground floor. Gunther led them down a corridor until he reached a door. Without knocking he pushed it open and the group followed him in. The infirmary smelled of medicine and gauze, but it was a giant room. There had to be at least fifty beds in there! And the large windows near the ceiling filled the room with lots of natural light.

"Sweet Clara!" Gunther announced, spreading open his arms as he walked further into the room. "You are a sight for sore eyes!"

"That's _Doctor Clara_ , Gunther. And enough of your nonsense, I don't want to hear your teasing today." Daunte stopped in his tracks. When Gunther described Dr. Clara, he half-expected to meet a woman easily the same age as Dr. Yulin. The young lady putting away bottles of potions in front of him however only looked just a few years older than Daunte himself. She had to be at least twenty or twenty-one years old. Her hair was a vibrant emerald color, and she wore it in a short ponytail beneath a thin white veil. She wore a doctor's coat much like Dr. Yulin had worn, and when she turned to face them Daunte saw she wore a turquoise tunic underneath the coat, along with dark red baggy pants. "Oh!" her violet eyes went wide. "A-Are these new recruits?"

"Yes, my Lady," Gunther said blithely. "I'm going to go introduce them to the Commander, but we needed to drop Arin off with you first."

"Who is Ar— _by Nagar_!" Dr. Clara suddenly shouted. She rushed forward to Daunte's side, reaching for Arin. "What has happened to this child?!"

"He has a serious lung infection and his body is weak," Daunte said. He helped Dr. Clara carry Arin to a bed. "C-Can you make him better?!"

Dr. Clara touched Arin's forehead with the back of her hand, and then she pressed two fingers to his neck. She frantically pulled out a watch and for a few minutes was looking at the watch in silence. Daunte wanted to ask her if Arin would be okay, but she wasn't looking at him.

"His pulse rate is too low for having such a high fever," Dr. Clara said. She slammed her watch back into her pocket and set a stethoscope in her ears. She pressed the chest piece over Arin's chest and listened carefully. After another couple of minutes she straightened. "It sounds like there's an infection of both pairs of lungs." She yanked the stethoscope out of her ears and glared at Daunte. "What is your relation to this boy?"

"H-He's my brother," Daunte said. "We—"

"And you allowed him to become this sick?!" Dr. Clara exploded at him. "I've never seen such criminal negligence of a child's health in my entire life! Don't you care that he could die?!"

Daunte stared at her, stunned. How could convey to her that this wasn't his fault? That he truly _was_ trying to do everything he could for Arin?

"Clara, knock it off!" Gunther interjected. "Daunte didn't do this to Arin! These kids escaped from the Dark Chasm!"

"The Dark Chasm?" Dr. Clara's face fell and went pale. "Y-You all are from the Dark Chasm?!"

"Yes," Daunte said. " _That's_ how Arin got so sick."

"O-Oh." Dr. Clara pressed a hand over her mouth. She looked so stricken all of a sudden that Daunte couldn't feel angry with her over her outburst. "I-I'm sorry. I'm so, _so_ sorry. I should've realized that his weakened condition was caused by that horrible place!"

Daunte looked at her. He had the right be angry with her for jumping to conclusions or he could just brush it off. After a moment he said, "Don't worry about it."

Dr. Clara quickly nodded. "Okay. I'll do everything I can for this child to get him back to perfect health."

"Thank you, Dr. Clara," Daunte said, bowing deeply.

"No, just call me Clara," she replied, waving a dismissive hand. "I might be a doctor, but I don't need to be called such to validate my station."

"Wait!" Gunther snapped. "Then how come _I_ have to call you doctor then?!"

"Well, _you're_ an exception Gunther."

"What does that mean?!"

"But thank you, Clara, for taking care of Arin," Daunte added again.

"I'll do everything I can for this child," Clara reassured him.

"That's the spirit!" Gunther cheered. "Daunte, you can leave Arin in Clara's capable hands. Let's go up and meet the Commander!"

The others departed the infirmary, but Daunte lingered for a little while longer. He took off his tekko and pulled off his right glove to touch Arin on the shoulder. "I'll be back soon," he promised his sleeping brother. "Just concentrate on getting better, all right?"

"Hey," Clara said suddenly. Daunte looked up at her but she was looking at his hand. Daunte realized his True Rune was visible and quickly covered it up. "No, don't worry." She raised her hands defensively and came around the bed to Daunte's side. "I-I've just never seen a rune like this before."

"Really?" Daunte uncovered his hand and showed the True Rune to her. "It doesn't look familiar to you?"

"Hmm." Clara traced the halo symbol on the rune with her index finger. "Actually…" she leaned in closer to get a better look at it. After a moment, she straightened. "Actually, it _does_ look a little familiar to me."

"Really?!" Daunte exclaimed. He grabbed her shoulders. "What does it look like?!"

"I-I can't really be sure because it looks very different, but here." She showed Daunte her own hands. On her left hand she had a pale blue rune that looked similar to Surya's Water Rune, but slightly bigger in appearance. On her right hand, though…her right hand had a dark green rune. A single vertical line with a horizontal line above it, with a single dot above that line. Daunte checked his True Rune, which was golden-green with a halo above a line, and looked back at the rune on Clara's hand.

"That," Clara said. "Is the Resurrection Rune. Your rune looks very similar to it, doesn't it?"

Daunte looked at the two runes side by side. _Resurrection Rune…huh? Yes, they do look similar._

"You'd better get going," Clara said, withdrawing her hand. "I'll make sure your brother is taken care of."

"T-Thank you." Daunte yanked his glove and tekko back on, bowed again and hurried out of the infirmary.

* * *

Daunte caught up with the others on the second floor. However they headed up another flight of stairs to the third level of the castle. On this floor there was only one set of doors, and they were thick double doors. This was most likely the war room the soldier had mentioned. "You guys can relax," Gunther told them. "There's no way the Commander will turn you guys out after hearing your story!"

"Will he help me find my family?" Surya asked him.

"This is the Falenan Royal Family we're talking about, isn't it? It would be stupid _not_ to help you." Gunther pounded his fist on the door. "Commander? May I come in?"

"Come in, Gunther," came a crisp reply.

"I can't believe we're actually meeting Bearyl Lutis!" Felicity whispered.

"Yeah," Roen said, his tone not as enthusiastic.

Gunther pushed open the door, revealing a giant chamber. They walked up four steps into the room, and Daunte saw five people standing around a circular table in the back of the room, and one person sitting at the table. There was a young man with shoulder length dark silver hair dressed in a forest green sherwani standing with a bronze-skinned raven-haired young lady dressed in a tanned colored buckskinned dress, and a black thin veil on her head. A dark-skinned man with a buzz cut wearing a black kurta had looked up at them. His brown eyes had a hard look to them so Daunte looked instead to the young man with messy red hair standing at the table. The man wore a peculiar expression on his face. He was smiling but his eyes were half-lidded, as though he were half-asleep.

"My Lord, I have brought the new recruits I told you about in the letter I sent ahead of us." Gunther bowed deeply before straightening and gesturing to the teenagers behind him. "I have brought you four survivors of the Dark Chasm, and a prince from Falena. This is Daunte, Roen, Felicity, and Surya Falenas." He pointed to each teenager in kind. "The fourth child from the Dark Chasm, Arin, is in the infirmary. Everyone." Gunther turned to face them as a man walked around the table towards them. "This is the Commander of Nagarea's Liberation Army—Bearyl Lutis."

Daunte had never heard much about Bearyl Lutis, but what he'd heard had varied from person to person. Some people spoke of him with curses and oaths, and others spoke of him with reverence. But seeing the man for the first time, Daunte didn't know which stories were true.

 _But I must rely on him to help us._

"Welcome to the Liberation Army." Bearyl Lutis was an older man, possibly in his mid-thirties, but he had stress lines in his pale face that had prematurely aged him. His hair was very short, as though he'd shaved his head recently, but black hair had started to grow back. His dark eyes looked at each of them closely. He was wearing a dark silver kurta with matching pants, but he had a long trench coat on that was indigo blue, the same color as the soldiers Daunte had seen with Gunther. The man before him exuded authority, and Daunte found himself standing up a little straighter in his presence.

"We're always welcoming to new recruits, especially poor children such as yourselves," Bearyl continued. "I founded the Liberation Army three years ago, after I realized how out of control the government had truly become. I didn't like that free speech was oppressed, that _people_ were oppressed. I wanted to make a difference and guide Nagarea back on the path of righteousness. Knowing the tragedies you each have suffered, I know you all can be trusted to never betray me."

Daunte didn't know how to respond to him, so he merely nodded.

"Your timing is very good, though. Here, let me introduce you to everyone." He waved the red-haired man forward. "This is my army's chief strategist, Caesar Silverberg. He's from a celebrated family of strategists in the Toran Republic, and his knowledge has been invaluable to me."

"Hey," Caesar greeted with a lazy droll, walking towards them with his hands behind his head. Daunte was shocked that someone so young was the strategist of the Liberation Army. Caesar still looked like a teenager!

"This is my Lieutenant General and second-in-command, Varnaz Behzadi," Bearyl continued, indicating the dark-skinned man still standing at the table. "Varnaz has been with me from the beginning, and has been the chief person I can trust in this Army. Don't be afraid to trust him, either."

Varnaz did not give them a greeting. He was wearing a scowl and regarded all of them with an unwelcoming look. Daunte looked away from him to focus back on Bearyl.

"We also have the mayor of _Agameru_ here, Lord Lorik Varra, serving as one of my trusted Lieutenants," Bearyl said, indicating the silver-haired man.

"It's nice to meet you all," Lorik said, coming around the table towards them. Though he wore a welcoming smile, his expression looked rather strained. He gestured the raven-haired girl forward. "This is Tala, my bodyguard."

 _Bodyguard?_ Daunte was surprised to see someone so young have the responsibility of being the bodyguard to a lord, but Tala looked like she was still on her guard, even in such a trusting environment. He noticed the head of a weapon strapped to her back, but Bearyl drew his attention back to him.

"And lastly, another one of my Lieutenants." He indicated the woman sitting down, though she was rising to her feet. "This is Allise. She knows many things about the aristocracy that we did not know, so her knowledge has been a great asset."

"I see you've brought back some very young recruits, Gunther." Allise had a unique look to her. She wasn't stunningly beautiful, but she had a pixie-like cuteness to her. As she approached, Daunte's eyes caught something on her forehead. It was a blue-purple symbol akin to flames forming around a circle. _That looks like a rune, but I don't know which one._

But Allise's overall appearance was very surprising. She wasn't dressed in traditional Nagarean attire. Her hair was chestnut brown and worn in a plait, with two strands hanging in her face and over her blue eyes. But she wasn't wearing any sort of veil, either solid or thin. Her head was bare and she instead had a pink capelet around her shoulders, and wore a short pink dress underneath that rested above her knees. The dress itself looked tight on her though, and it showed off all her curves. Her unusual outfit was capped off with black stockings and black heeled boots. If she was going for a look of discretion, she hadn't succeeded.

"And you all survived the Dark Chasm," Allise said. She looked at each of them. "It's a horrible place, isn't it? I suppose I can consider myself lucky I didn't spend as much time there."

"Y-You were also sentenced to the Dark Chasm?!" Felicity cried out.

"Years ago," Allise said. "But I was pardoned after three months."

"Pardoned?" Roen wondered. "T-Then, why did you join the Liberation Army?"

Allise smiled at him. It was a smile full of pain. "I have my reasons."

"Allise is one of most trustworthy people I've personally ever met," Gunther said. He reached out and laid a hand on her shoulder. "You can rely on her for anything." Daunte noticed a subtle change in his voice when he spoke about Allise. It shouldn't have been surprising since Gunther flirted with every single lady who had crossed their path in HQ, no matter the age of the women, but the way he was talking about and looking at Allise was…different.

Allise laughed softly. "You're giving me too much credit." In an equally subtle gesture, Allise sidestepped and gently pulled away from his hand.

"But all of these kids are exceptional fighters," Gunther said, turning back to Bearyl. "They fought alongside me against soldiers of the Holy Army. Not only can you trust them to be loyal to you, but they will certainly carry their weight around here for you."

"I agree," Caesar said. He lowered his arms to his sides. "Though they are children, that doesn't disqualify them entirely as potential recruits. Sometimes the drive of youth can outscore the drive of maturity. I've heard a rumor, though, about one of you." His eyes suddenly fixed upon Daunte. "You said your name is Daunte?"

"Yes," Daunte said.

"Is it true that you have a True Rune, Daunte?"

"True Rune?" Gunther quickly asked.

"True Rune?!" Bearyl exclaimed. "Is this true?! Quick, show it to me now!"

Daunte hesitated. He was in enough trouble as it was because of his Rune, but he didn't want to hide anything from Bearyl Lutis.

"Daunte, what will you do?" Roen asked him softly.

Daunte debated internally, and came to his decision. He took off his tekko and pulled off his glove to show his hand to Bearyl. _Maybe I can get a clear enough answer about what rune this is?_

Bearyl looked at the True Rune closely, as did Caesar. Gunther and Allise also observed the rune from a distance. Bearyl traced the outline of the Rune and looked at Caesar. "I've never seen a rune like this before. Does this mean this really is a True Rune?"

"Perhaps," Caesar said. He looked at Daunte again. "Where did you find this?"

"In r-ruins in the Dark Chasm," Daunte said. He glanced at Surya. "Surya said they were Sindar ruins. But I don't know what this rune is, or how I'm supposed to use it."

"Well, this confirms one thing," Caesar said, pulling away. "The Theocracy _did_ turn the Dark Chasm into a labor camp to find a rune. And we can assume that the Rune choose you, Daunte, and it wasn't affixed to your arm by a rune master?"

"That's correct," Daunte said.

"Opening a prison camp for children, just to find a True Rune," Allise said softly. She shook her head. "It's a travesty."

"B—my Lord," Daunte corrected himself as Bearyl stepped away from him. "Would you consider liberating the Dark Chasm?"

"We _have_ given it considerable thought," Bearyl said. Daunte saw Gunther shift out of the corner of his eye. "However, at this time we don't have the resources or manpower to lay siege to the Dark Chasm. If we did, then we would've liberated it by now. But I can assure you that seizing the Dark Chasm is one of our priorities, and once we're better prepared for it we will formulate a campaign."

"T-Thank you," Daunte said, bowing. Roen and Felicity bowed as well.

"See? These kids _would_ be perfect recruits," Gunther added.

"Our morale is very high," Caesar said. "But it will undoubtedly increase once your soldiers realize we have a True Rune wielder. I believe these kids will be a valuable asset to the Army."

Daunte didn't quite know what to think about Caesar repeatedly referring to him as "kid", when Caesar looked to be the same age as him. But he said nothing and instead kept his eyes on Bearyl.

Bearyl considered Gunther and Caesar's words in silence for several moments before he smiled and nodded. "Sounds good. You all are welcome to join us."

"Thank you," Daunte said, bowing again. He saw Roen and Felicity bow as well, and he let out a sigh of relief. _Good! I've found a place where Arin can recover without difficulty! And I found a place where we can relax without having to worry about running away!_

"With all due respect, sir," Surya said suddenly, having been silent up to this point. "I've already sworn allegiance to the Queen's Knights in Falena, so I'm morally obligated to refrain from swearing allegiance to another cause without my Queen's expressed permission."

"Completely understandable," Bearyl answered easily. "And I do know why you came here. We've heard about the kidnappings of your family members."

"Do you know where they may have been taken?" Surya asked him.

"We don't have anything concrete, but our scouts in Baltas have said that five coffins arrived in Baltas a few days ago."

" _Coffins_?!" Felicity cried out. Daunte was equally horrified.

But Surya surged forward. "Coffins. We got a confession that stated my cousins were smuggled into Nagarea in coffins. Have you heard anything else?"

"Very little else," Bearyl admitted reluctantly. "But it was strange. My scouts said that five coffins arrived in Baltas…but only _four_ left the town."

"Four," Surya echoed. "That means one of my cousins was left behind in Baltas!"

"There has been a sudden spike in security in Baltas, so it wouldn't surprise me."

"Lord Bearyl." Surya saluted him. "I request your assistance in my mission into Baltas and beyond Baltas. I cannot speak on behalf of my Queen, but you can be rest assured she will be very appreciative of you for rescuing her children!"

"I can't do that."

Daunte stiffened. _What?_

"I-I'm sorry?" Surya asked. He didn't bother keeping the shock from his voice.

"We've had no formal diplomatic relations with Falena in over a hundred years," Bearyl told him. "For all I know, your Queen is already undergoing negotiations with the Theocracy for the return of her children. If this is the case, then I risk the lives of the men and women who serve under me. Your Queen might ransom for you children—either with money, or with soldiers to help crush my Army. Even if we rescue your cousins, there is a very real risk that we may be attacked by both the Theocracy _and_ the Falenans. There's just too much that we don't know about, so I can't take that risk."

Daunte saw his point, but it angered him that Bearyl Lutis was not going to do anything for Surya.

"Sir, my Aunt would most certainly _not_ negotiate with the people who kidnapped her children," Surya said. His tone was incredulous. "If she intended on ransoming for them, then she wouldn't have sent me, or any of her other Queen's Knights into Falena! She wants them rescued quietly and without incident! Will you really not support me in this?!"

"There is too much that I don't know," Bearyl said. "And the history between our two countries has never been pretty. I will give you horses and supplies to ride to Baltas, and I will allow you to use my headquarters to rest and regroup your family, but until I get more information this is a risk I can't afford to take."

"Sir," Gunther interjected. "This involves the _Royal Family_. I think it's worth the risk to help this kid!"

"Gunther," Varnaz snapped at him. "It's not your place to speak against the decision of our Commander. If he's decided to not lend the Army to the Falenan boy, then that is the decision."

"Sir." Surya was pleading now. "I appreciate what you are offering me, but this is the _Queen's children_! One of them is going to be Queen herself in a few years! I can't speak for the Queen, but I imagine she will be very grateful to you for your help! She might even lend _you_ soldiers to defeat the Theocracy!"

"I appreciate the offer," Bearyl said. "But these are _your_ words, not your Queen's, so I cannot take your promises at face-value. Besides, I would rather use the might of the _Nagarean_ _people_ to win this war and not rely on foreign aid."

"But—"

"Prince." Caesar stepped forward and placed a hand on Surya's shoulder. "We understand your concern, but the Commander has refused to give you military help. You're not going to change his mind, and we believe that this is the best course of action."

"And you as a strategist agree with him?" Surya asked him. Daunte saw Bearyl twitch very slightly from this question.

"Yes," Caesar said without hesitation.

Surya shook his head and shook Caesar's hand off his shoulder. "Thank you, sir, for this _menial_ help. I'll be departing shortly to go to Baltas."

"Wai—Surya?!" Roen began, but Surya stormed from the room. He looked wordlessly at Felicity and Daunte. Daunte honestly didn't know what to say or do.

 _But I made a promise to help Surya find his family._

"'Menial help'?" Bearyl echoed softly. The man scowled and looked away. "What an ungrateful statement. But I shouldn't be surprised to see such behavior from a _pampered prince_."

Daunte bristled at the rather ignorant insult against Surya, but he brushed it off. He turned to Bearyl and bowed. "Lord Commander. I know I just joined the Liberation Army, but I'm indebted to Surya. With your permission, I want to help him rescue the royals."

"Indebted to him?" Bearyl asked him, turning back around. "How so?"

"I swore to him that I would help him if he saved my brother Arin's life, and he did. Is it all right if I leave and go with him to Baltas?"

"Your brother…Gunther, you said the child was in the infirmary?"

"Yes," Gunther said. "He's very ill, my Lord. Clara is going to have her hands busy with him for a while."

"I see." Bearyl waved a dismissive hand. "I give you permission to assist Prince Surya."

"T-Thank you, sir." Daunte bowed deeper.

"W-We owe Surya too!" Felicity chimed in. "May Roen and I go with Daunte and Surya as well?"

"Yes, yes, go ahead." Bearyl shook his head. "Hurry and fulfill your debt to the prince."

"Well, I guess I better tag along," Gunther said, stretching his arms over his head. "Somebody ought to babysit you guys and make sure you stay out of trouble."

"Really? You're coming too?" Roen asked. Daunte remembered Gunther's exceptional fighting skill and he smiled slightly.

"No, Gunther," Bearyl interjected. The leader had already retreated to the table. "You're needed here while we plan our next operation."

"My Lord, I won't be gone for long," Gunther said, raising his hands a little. "We'll just be in and out of Baltas and be back in no time!"

"But didn't you just come back?" Allise teased him softly.

"Ah, about that." Bearyl gave Gunther a hard look. "Three men died under your command during this recent trip, Gunther. And before that two men died. How is it that whenever I send you out on a mission, that you're completely incapable of bringing back any members of your squads in one piece?"

Daunte felt embarrassed to be witnessing Bearyl dressing Gunther down like this. He looked at Allise and saw that her expression had become strained, clearly not expecting her teasing to lead Bearyl to start berating Gunther.

"…What can I say?" Gunther said after a long moment of silence. The Lieutenant's back was to Daunte so he couldn't see the man's face. "I seem to attract the unsavory types to me."

"Well, you can stay here away from the unsavory types," Bearyl told him. "And with you here, maybe some of my men will be able to keep their lives for a little while longer."

Daunte's brow furrowed. _Why is Bearyl being so hostile to Gunther? Is there some sort of bad blood between them? It's not like Gunther was just throwing away lives! He felt the loss of all three of his men, and he buried their bodies himself!_

"Sorry, kids," Gunther said, turning around. He was smiled jovially but his eyes were closed. "Looks like I'll be relaxing here with some warm wine and the company of beautiful women." He turned back around and bowed to Bearyl. "My Lord, I'm going to go lie down for a little while. I'll be happy to give you my input about the campaign later."

"See to it that you do," Bearyl told him sharply. Gunther casually sauntered out of the room without another word. "As for the rest of you, my castle is open to you. While I understand your obligation to the Falenan Prince, I hope you understand that I will be calling upon you three for missions in the near future. Understood?"

Daunte bit down on his lower lip. He wanted to question Bearyl about why he'd been so rude to Gunther, but he also wanted to hurry and catch up to Surya before the other teenager left. Ultimately, he sighed and bowed. "Yes, my Lord."

"Good. You are dismissed."

* * *

"Why would Bearyl Lutis refuse to aid Surya?" Roen wondered as they climbed down the stairs. "Wouldn't the wisest thing to do would be to help rescue the royals? I-I mean, I can't imagine the Queen of Falena refusing to send aid to the Liberation Army if they successfully rescue all five royals! It seems like he's squandering a good opportunity to get a powerful foreign ally!"

"There must be something we don't know about," Felicity said. "After all, the Army Strategist backed up Lord Bearyl's decision. If the Commander was making a poor decision, his strategist would tell him so right?"

"It bothers me," Roen said. "He dismisses Surya and insults him, and then he humiliates his Lieutenant in front of new recruits? The new recruits that the _Lieutenant_ chose? It's not very professional."

"What do you think, Daunte?" Felicity asked him.

Daunte agreed with both points his friends made. He knew that Bearyl had to have had some valid reason for why he refused to give Surya more support to find his family. But he was also upset with how dismissive he'd been of Surya, and the way he'd treated Gunther. If Gunther had a bad reputation then maybe he did deserve reprimand, but to do so in front of people Gunther himself had recruited was a bit emasculating.

 _But we agreed to join the Liberation Army. We'll have to make the best of this._

"I agree with both of you," Daunte said finally. "But we've just met everyone here so I think it's too soon to jump to conclusions. Once we stay here longer and interact more with the people here, then I think we can make better judgments about who these people are."

"…That's true," Roen admitted.

"Let's hurry and catch up to Surya," Felicity said. "Hopefully he hasn't already left yet."

Daunte wanted to stop by the infirmary and say goodbye to Arin, but Felicity had a good point that Surya might ride off before they make it outside. As they headed towards the front entrance of the castle, Daunte was surprised to find random soldiers approach him and engage him in conversation.

"Did you meet with the Commander? He's a pretty approachable guy, isn't he?"

"Lord Bearyl has a habit of yelling at Lieutenant Gunther for every little thing. Gunther does have a laidback personality, but he's also an incredibly hard worker! Sometimes it feels like the Commander doesn't appreciate all that Gunther's done for the Army!"

"It's pretty surprising that Lorik Varra was made Lieutenant, isn't it? Unlike both Gunther and Varnaz, he has no combat experience. That girl Tala he keeps at his side fights on his behalf. But he's the only mayor that has joined our Army, so Lord Bearyl probably gave him the Lieutenant rank out of curtesy."

"Lord Bearyl and General Varnaz have been best friends for years. The General is very intimidating, and sometimes he speaks in such a rough way that it's exhausting talking to him, but his loyalty to Bearyl is unquestionable."

 _This is the same as when we arrived,_ Daunte thought. _I'm a stranger, but the people here will spill out any gossip or personal details to me. It's pretty surprising._

They hurried down the front steps, and Daunte was relieved to see that Surya was still saddling his horse. "Surya!" Roen called out. "Wait up!"

Surya turned around to face them. "Are you guys coming with me?"

"Yes," Felicity said. "Daunte explained that we were indebted to you and Lord Bearyl gave us permission to help you."

Surya's brow arched slightly. "Help me until Baltas, or help me find my whole family?"

Daunte mentally went over Bearyl's words to him and nodded. "I told him that I promised to help you find _all_ the royals and he gave us permission to help you."

"Thank you, guys." Surya jerked the straps around his horse. "From a leadership standpoint I can understand where he's coming from. But to implicitly refuse to give my family aid like that…I won't forget it."

There was a feeling of foreboding with that simple promise. But Surya finished tying his bags to the horse and smiled at them. "Let's hurry then, and find out which one of my cousins is at Baltas."

They walked alongside their horses to guide them on the rocky, uneven path. As they reached the grove of trees, however, Daunte saw someone seated on a horse, blocking their path.

"What took you guys so long?" Gunther called out to them. He turned his horse around to face them. "Let's get going to Baltas!"

"G-Gunther?!" Roen sputtered. He slapped a hand over his mouth when Gunther pressed a finger against his mouth, signaling them to be quiet. The group hurried over to Gunther with their horses. "W-What are you doing?!" Roen hissed.

"Isn't it obvious?" Gunther asked. "I'm chaperoning you guys to Baltas so we can rescue a princess."

"Or prince," Surya said. "Four of my cousins are girls, but one is a boy."

Gunther shrugged. "Or prince."

"But didn't Lord Bearyl tell you to stay behind?" Felicity asked him. She looked back at the castle nervously.

"And allow three survivors of the Dark Chasm and a prince to go on a dangerous mission by themselves?" Gunther shook his head. "It wouldn't sit well with my conscience if I didn't do anything to help you."

"You're disobeying a direct order from your commanding officer," Surya pointed out. "You could be court-martialed for this. Or even be accused of treason if Lord Bearyl is in a bad enough mood."

 _Treason?_ Daunte's stomach squirmed with discomfort.

"Pssh," Gunther said dismissively, waving a hand. "I've done worse than this and the Commander hasn't punished me! Besides, I'm not committing treason. I'm helping you in a rescue operation. We're comrades now, so we need to watch each other's back. Besides." Gunther reached into his pocket and pulled out four small books. "You guys forgot your identification books. Gizli just finished them, so I went and picked them up for you."

Felicity leaned close to Daunte. "If we take Gunther along, our rescue mission _will_ be easier because he can help us fight. But he's also disobeying Lord Bearyl, and he could get into _serious_ trouble when we come back. Should we take Gunther along with us?"

Daunte wanted the extra help, but he also didn't want Gunther to get into serious trouble. He looked up at Gunther to say something but stilled when he saw the look the older man was giving him. "Don't worry about me, Daunte. I'm doing this for you guys, but I'm also doing this for the Army. We _are_ the good guys after all, and we're different from the Theocracy. I want to show you guys, and the people of Falena, that we really are different."

Daunte opened his mouth to speak, but Gunther interjected. "I'm older than you guys, you know. Well, not _much_ older but still older. I don't need a couple of teenagers worrying over me. I'll be fine. Promise."

"…All right," Daunte said finally, nodding. "We'd be happy to have your help."

"Don't blame us though if Lord Bearyl brings his full fury down upon you," Surya added, swinging into his saddle.

"You sound too serious for someone your age," Gunther teased back. He rode over to them and handed them each their own forged book before he swung his horse around swiftly rode off.

"I hope Gunther doesn't get into too much trouble," Felicity said, tucking her book away before riding after him.

"But I'm glad he _is_ coming with us," Roen added. He looked at Daunte. "But your True Rune has proven to be very helpful with us, Daunte. It should help us a lot again."

Daunte looked back down at the back of his hand again as Roen rode off. He peeled off the glove slightly to take a look at it. _Clara said it was similar to the Resurrection Rune. They look only slightly similar, but this one seems very different._

"Anything wrong?" Surya said.

Daunte shook his head and reset the glove. "The doctor in the castle said that my rune looked similar to the Resurrection Rune."

"Really?" Surya looked surprised. Then he shrugged. "Well, maybe your True Rune is the parent rune of the Resurrection Rune?"

"'Parent rune'?" Daunte asked him.

"All the runes in the world were born from the 27 True Runes," Surya told him. "They have similar powers to the True Rune, but much weaker. Maybe the Resurrection Rune is a variant of your rune?"

Daunte digested this information as Surya rode off. He looked back down at his hand. _So…my Rune may be linked to the Resurrection Rune? But I don't know anything about the Resurrection Rune. I wonder if I'll ever really be able to understand this Rune._

He shook his head and directed his horse to begin riding. _I'll worry about it some other time. I have more important things I need to do._


	8. Chapter One: Part Eight

I'm uploading this a day early because I won't have access to my home computer tomorrow. :)

In other news, in four weeks I'm going to be formally introducing the Chiyu Star into the story. As such, that particular poll will be closing in _three_ weeks. There is currently a tie for first place, so please make sure to vote in the poll before it closes. If you can't vote directly, please feel free to write your votes in a review here. I will count them towards the final result.

* * *

Part Eight

The ride to Baltas surprisingly didn't take long. They followed Gunther on the trail and had minimal contact with monsters along the way. They didn't face any problems re-crossing the Bridge of Faith. It was a relief, but it also baffled Daunte how little the soldiers paid attention to bulletins. He was fairly certain that a bulletin had gone out for them, and even if they didn't know that he had switched clothes, Surya was still in his clothes from Falena. Yet none of the guards they passed gave them a second glance.

 _It's a wonder how the Liberation Army hasn't been able to conquer the government yet if_ _ **this**_ _is the type of soldiers that serve in the Holy Army._

This didn't go unnoticed by Surya, either. "Should I be relieved or nervous that we haven't been stopped once for questioning?"

"These guys probably serve under Sheikh Umed," Gunther said. "Sheikh Umed has a more relaxed approach to command than the other Sheikh's do. As such, he's extremely popular amongst soldiers and even the civilians of his provinces."

"Sheikh Umed?" Surya echoed. "I heard that name yesterday. And you guys mentioned another Sheikh as well?" he glanced at Daunte.

"Sloan Faakhir," Felicity said softly.

Gunther shuddered. "Yeah, he's the _antithesis_ of Sheikh Umed. Granted he's the perfect representation of how corrupt the Theocracy is, but the stories I've heard—" he shook his head.

"What have you heard?" Daunte asked.

But Gunther shook his head. "You don't want to know."

"We've met Sheikh Faakhir," Roen said. "What he did to Daunte was…"

Gunther quickly glanced at Daunte. "You survived an encounter with _him_?!"

"…Yes," Daunte said. However, the onetime beating he'd received from the Sheikh seemed to pale in comparison to the scope of the other man's crimes. _I saw Tidur's memory of him beating her up, but I don't know how many other times that happened. But that one incident left a scar on her face—and who knows if he'd also hurt Esther and Ciana the same way?_

"There's a lot of responsibility to being a Sheikh," Gunther said quietly. His tone had become grim. "But the stories surrounding Sheikh Faakhir are reprehensible, despite his responsibilities."

"Like how his family literally ran away from him to escape him?" Felicity asked.

"That, and…and the fact that he's killed his own soldiers who crossed him."

"W-What?!" Surya cried out, aghast. Daunte was also horrified, although he wondered why he was surprised.

"They're just rumors, but I've heard that close to twenty soldiers under his command have died by his hands—literally—for failures or insubordination or even if they give the Sheikh a dirty look. From what I've heard the men who serve under are living in fear of his wrath, but…" he shook his head again. "Some of the more _violent_ soldiers are more welcoming of his demeanor because it means they can act out on their violent impulses on unsuspecting people. The Northwest Provinces aren't the happiest of places right now."

"Are _all_ the Sheikhs like this?" Surya asked.

"No, of course not. In fact, _Faakhir himself_ didn't used to be like this, at least from what I've heard. These rumors didn't start surfacing about his behavior until three years ago. It's like something switched off the inhibitor in his mind that told him that constantly hurting other people and killing your own soldiers was wrong."

 _Three years—that was around the time Tidur left him with their daughters._ Daunte quickly looked at Roen and Felicity, and he saw from their expressions that they had made the same connection. _So, had Sloan Faakhir just been channeling his inner rage at his family, and when they left he unleashed it on his subordinates?!_

"But no, not all Sheikh are like this," Gunther said.

"I've been wondering—what exactly are Sheikh?"

"They command the four regions of Nagarea," Roen said. "And these regions are divided equally, with Mlkwt Alsmwat in the center. Sloan Faakhir controls the Northwest provinces. Sheikh Keiran Umed controls the Northeast provinces—which is where we're going. The Southeast, which as we all know is where the Dark Chasm is located, is controlled by…" he frowned. "I can't remember. Didn't a new Sheikh be instated last year?"

"Yes," Gunther confirmed. "Sheikh Tamara Nuori, a completely inexperienced teenaged girl they plucked from University of Žiak to take command. Rumor has it that the previous Sheikh made a _little_ too much noise about the treatment you children received in the Dark Chasm. He, unfortunately, suffered an "accident" in the capital."

"Really?" Felicity asked. Her tone was a little disbelieving.

"Just rumors. But it's rather suspicious that his accident occurred just hours before he was to file a formal complaint about the Dark Chasm to the Grand Citadel, isn't it?"

Daunte was honestly stunned. So their suffering didn't truly go unnoticed? And the Sheikh who oversaw their suffering _died_ because he wouldn't keep quiet?

"Sheikh Nuori just so happened to be the highest-ranked student socially at Žiak's university and she'd lived almost her entire life in the capital, so the High Clerics most likely chose her for the promotion because of her natural ignorance of the happenings in the Southeast. Only fifteen years old, too." Gunther shook his head. "The Southeast is a mess because of her inept rule, but I can't really fault her since a position of power was forced upon her that she wasn't ready for."

 _I get it now. This explains why the Matron was personally escorted by the Sheikh of the Northwest instead of the Southeast. And she's only fifteen years old?_ Daunte shook his head. _But her inexperience isn't an excuse for being ignorant of what's going on in her region._

"And lastly, the Sheikh of the Southwest," Roen said. "And the oldest of the other Sheikhs, Keha Hale."

" _Yeah_ ," Gunther said suddenly. There was so much venom in his tone of voice that Daunte couldn't help but stare at him. He debated if he should ask what the matter was or keep quiet. After a moment he decided. "Is everything okay, Gunther?"

Gunther waved a hand quickly. "Don't worry about it."

 _Did Sheikh Keha Hale do something to Gunther?_ Daunte was curious, but ultimately didn't press the issue.

They left the Bridge of Faith without incident and steered their horses towards Baltas. Daunte however was on edge, but it didn't have anything to do with the mission ahead of them or the fact that the guards surprisingly not suspicious of them.

It was the first time in three years that he was separated from Arin. Daunte realized his brother's absence from his side was unsettling, and he felt awful that he couldn't stay by Arin's side.

 _He'll be okay. I know Clara will do all she can for him._

It was late into the afternoon and into the early evening when they arrived in Baltas. Though originally settled as a border town right before the Nagarean-Falenan border, the town served little purpose after the Great Earthquake destroyed the land route between the two countries. But the few tourists who came to Nagarea always gravitated to Baltas, and so the modest town of six hundred people always enjoyed moderate wealth.

"Look," Surya said suddenly, pointing. Though Baltas had no official gate, the entrance into town was currently swamped with people. Soldiers were checking each and every person coming into town and leaving. "The security here is even stronger than at K'alak'i Patieba and the Bridge of Faith. This must mean one of my cousins is here, right?"

"Well…not necessarily," Gunther said. "Security is always tight in Baltas due to the number of foreigners in town, and because smugglers usually meet here. But this _is_ tighter security than usual, so it looks like our trip wasn't wasted."

"Smugglers?" Roen asked.

"From what I've heard, Nagarean medicines are the best on the Southern Continent, and are sought after in both Falena and Armes. Naturally, smugglers like sharing them because of the profits they bring."

"Isn't smuggling punishable by death?" Felicity asked.

"Some people are willing to take the risk," Gunther said.

"So smuggling and forgery are punishable by death here," Surya observed. He scowled. "Is there _any_ crime not punishable by death in Nagarea?"

"It depends on what the High Clerics say."

"It depends on the _Scriptures_ ," Roen interjected.

"Get your identification books ready," Gunther said, pulling his own out. "They'll check them before we're allowed in. But don't worry—Gizli is the best at what she does, so these guards won't suspect a thing."

Daunte pulled his out, and flipped it open to see the identity Gizli had given him. He didn't like his picture, but his job title was plausible. _A carpenter from Farna. Well, hopefully if they see my hands they'll dismiss it as that._

"Gizli made me a _farm hand_?!" Roen said with alarm. He looked up. "T-That's barely above a vassal! Won't they question why a farm hand is riding a horse?!"

"Pssh, don't worry so much," Gunther said. "Do you think the town guards actually _read_ job titles? They just skim the books and make sure your faces match your pictures. The Garrisons, however, are _much_ tougher with security."

"You could say it was a gift," Felicity offered.

But Roen really hadn't needed to worry. Daunte tried not to look nervous as he handed over his identification book to the guard, but to his surprise the guard didn't even look at his face. He just flipped open the book, read it for five seconds, and then handed it back to him. He slid off his horse and guided it past Baltas's gate and into town. He waited as the others also had their books checked, and were similarly skimmed over by the guards. Even after they passed the checkpoint, they didn't relax even after they dismounted and tied their horses and grabbed their bags. But they tried to look as unassuming as possible as they entered the city proper.

They past two houses when Gunther finally said, "It looks like we're in the clear."

Daunte allowed himself to let out a short breath when the shout arose.

" _Halt_!"

He froze in his tracks, as did his comrades. The authoritative voice behind them continued. "You suspicious people! Hands in the air this instant!"

Slowly, they raised their hands in surrender. Daunte felt his stomach churn, and he cursed himself for getting caught when they were so close to getting to Surya's cousin. He closed his eyes briefly, and wondered how they were going to get out of this mess—

"Stay where you are!"

All of a sudden, the guards ran past them and into the town square. Daunte opened his eyes and lowered his hands, as did his companions. "…Not us, then?" Surya said softly.

"Pull out your identification books _now_!" the guard shouted. The guards had surrounded a pair clad in dull brown cloaks and hoods standing in front of a beautiful marble water fountain with a statue of Nagar on top. It was easy to tell by their height difference that one was a man and the other was a woman. "If you are Nagarean, then you know to carry your identification books at all times!"

"I see there's been a bit of a misunderstanding," the taller of the two said in a calm voice. He pushed back his hood, revealing a youthful, friendly face. His blonde bangs were long on the right side of his face, almost covering up his blue eye. "You see, we're not Nagarean. We—"

" _Spies_!" one guard shouted, quickly drawing his sword.

The stranger raised his hands defensively, but his demeanor was odd. It seemed like—at least to Daunte—that the man wasn't scared by this dire situation. "No, not quite. We're newlyweds, you see, and we're on our honeymoon. My blushing bride wanted to seek some adventure, so I thought a visit to this _lovely_ country would fulfill her wish."

"Hmm," his companion said, her face still obscured by her hood.

"Show us some form of identification!" the main guard snapped. "And your boat tickets!"

"Ah…" the man laughed nervously and rubbed at his head. "That's…quite impossible, sir."

"How come?!"

"Because during our voyage to this _fantastic_ country, our boat was struck with a terrible typhoon and we lost most of our belongings." He sighed sadly. "Our potch, our identification, our tickets…it was quite tragic!"

"Yes, quite tragic," the woman agreed in a most dull, uninspired voice.

Daunte looked at Surya, and then looked at the others. They knew that with the guards distracted this would be an ample time to run, but they couldn't help but watch this…scene.

The main guard folded his arms over his chest. "That sounds suspiciously convenient!"

"I don't know how it _could_ be," the man said.

The guard stepped closer until he was almost toe-to-toe with him. "Your name. Now."

"My name?" for the first time since this started, the man looked alarmed. "I-I…I am…" But he quickly recovered himself and stepped back to do a full sweeping bow. "I am _Schtolteheim Reinbach III_! The greatest swordsman in all of Middleport and all of the Island Nation Federations! And this is my bride—"

"Sierra Mikain," the woman said. She pushed back her hood to reveal a pale but very beautiful face framed by short silver hair. But Daunte was unsettled by her ruby eyes. They didn't look natural. "I am the former coven mistress of Blue Moon Village, and the wielder of the Moon Rune."

"U-Uh, sweetheart," the man—Schtolteheim, perhaps—pleaded with her. "I don't think you should share such details about yourself so freely."

"What can these humans possibly do to me?" Sierra huffed, shaking her head. "Are we done here? This nonsense is trying my patience."

"Nonsense? _Nonsense_?!" the main guard hollered. All of the guards then drew their swords, causing the people around them to cry out in fright. "I hereby place you both under arrest for illegal entry and disorderly conduct!"

"A-Ah, sir," the man pleaded with him. "Let's not jump to conclusions. We aren't—"

"Enough of this," Sierra said. She grabbed her companion by his sleeve and raised her right hand in the air. A light enveloped the two, and Daunte saw a rune symbol in the air. It looked like a pale purple crescent moon, but…its appearance looked a little sinister. Daunte felt his right arm twitch and he looked down. The True Rune on his hand seemed to vibrate in reaction to this rune.

 _My rune is reacting to it. But it hasn't reacted to any other runes so far!_ He raised his hand slightly to look at it. _That woman…does she also have a True Rune?!_

"HEY!"

Daunte looked up at the guard's shout. His eyes went wide at what he saw before him.

The suspicious man and woman were _gone_.

"Search the city!" the main guard shouted. "Those two are enemies of the state!"

Daunte bristled at how outrageously the man overreacted to the strangers, but the other guards took off in different directions in pursuit.

"Well, that was pretty entertaining," Gunther said. He grinned to himself. "I could drown in those beautiful eyes of hers…"

"The guards look like they'll be too wrapped up in looking for those two," Surya said. "So that'll give us an opportunity to find out any details in town about my cousins."

"I agree," Felicity said. "I wonder, though…if your cousin is still here, wouldn't they be at the mayor's mansion?"

"They could be," Gunther said. "But I think we should still do reconnaissance in town just to make sure. No use storming the mayor's mansion unless we know for sure that they're there. Ah." He gestured towards a large building with a bottle on the sign. "That's the tavern. We're _bound_ to hear rumors there, and we can get a quick meal for cheap!"

The tavern did seem to be as good of a start as any, though Daunte was amazed that such a place managed to stay open. He vaguely remembered that the Clerics had instituted restrictions on alcohol consumption, stating that each person may not drink more than two bottles of ale a day. But he also remembered hearing about how some people got around the law by simply refilling the same bottles over and over again.

 _Well, it doesn't matter. Even if I wanted to drink alcohol, I'm not the legal age._

The tavern was full of rambunctious people, all of them talking in loud voices and laughing heartily. Daunte noted that several people had flushed faces, which was a bigger indicator to him as any that the loophole abuse was still in effect.

The group first settled down for a quick meal. After being deprived of adequate food for so long, Daunte knew he had to treasure the food he could now receive. Unfortunately the soggy sandwich they gave to him was...less than appetizing. Certainly not worth the bits he had spent on it.

 _But it's still better than stale bread and porridge._

After eating the group split up and wandered the tavern picking up conversations. After fifteen minutes however, Daunte realized they weren't going to find anything useful there. The patrons were either bemoaning their day's work or talking about religion. Nothing that would indicate that a Falenan prince or princess was in Baltas.

"I'm actually surprised," Gunther said as they regrouped. "Generally taverns are the best places to pick up rumors, but I'm not hearing anything useful."

"Me either," Daunte admitted. The other three agreed. "So, should we leave and check around the city?"

"Well, we don't have a choice do we?" Surya said, shaking his head. "Le—"

The sound of rapid strumming on a guitar cut him off. All around them the male patrons bursts into cheers and whistles and jumped to their feet. " _Desiree_!" one shouted.

"My darling is finally coming out!" another yelled.

Daunte looked to his left, just then noticing a stage nearby. The patrons cheered louder as a figure draped completely in a magenta cloak slowly sauntered onstage. The figure paused in the center of the stage, and the cheers increased in volume. A few lewd remarks also rose in the air as suddenly the figure whipped off the cloak, and the person underneath caused Daunte's eyes to widen.

"Sweet Nagar, I'm in love," Gunther breathed.

Underneath the cloak had been a beautiful young woman looking to be a few years older than Daunte. Her bronze skin glowed in the lights…and a lot of it was showing. She wore pink baggy pants but they were worn low on her hips, and she had a matching pink cropped top that bared her entire midriff. Her hair was pale pink in color, and it was very curly and cut short above her shoulders. Her eyes were light brown and full of laughter as she began to dance on the stage. Her movements were elaborate and very, _very_ quick. Everyone around them cheered for her as she laughed and gestured to the crowd with graceful movements.

"Marry me, Desiree!" a man shouted. He looked like he was holding a ring box. "I'll make you happy, I swear I will!" if Desiree noticed him, she didn't give any indication that she did and continued dancing.

"I'm surprised she can get away with wearing so little," Felicity said, more to herself than anything.

All of a sudden, Desiree spun around and pointed directly at Daunte. "You!"

"M-Me?!" Daunte said, pointing at himself.

Desiree winked and gestured to him. "Come here."

"You lucky bastard!" a patron yelled, slapping Daunte hard on the shoulder.

Before Daunte could say anything more, he found himself being pushed towards Desiree and the stage itself. He opened his mouth to protest, but Desiree caught his flailing hands and pulled him onstage. "Dance with me. Please?" she batted her eyelashes and pouted cutely.

Daunte gaped back at her and looked around the room. Now suddenly the center of attention, he was very much aware of how full the tavern was. There had to be over a hundred people in there. "Don't worry about them," Desiree said, touching his cheek with her hand to turn his face back to hers. "Focus on me and relax. Just have fun."

Daunte had no idea how to dance, but it seemed impossible at this point to just jump off the stage and run. He looked at his allies helplessly, but they actually looked amused by the situation. Sighing shortly, he knew had no choice but to participate as the music began.

Unfortunately, his lack of dancing skill and even _stamina_ was very apparent when compared to Desiree. She moved so quickly in front of him and even _around_ him that she looked like a blur at times. Daunte tried to mimic her style, but his movements were very flailing and not at all graceful. He was aware that people were laughing at him and heckling him, and his face became hotter and hotter. _Please let this end!_

Finally the music ended and Desiree bowed gracefully. The crowd cheered, but Daunte still heard the heckling as he bowed stiffly. As he straightened he was startled when Desiree suddenly gave him a hug. "Good effort," she spoke into his ear. "Come back though when you become quicker on your feet." She kissed him on the cheek and hurried offstage.

Now alone onstage, the crowd switched from cheers to boos. Daunte ducked his head and jumped off the stage, which ended up being a _very_ good idea as somebody threw their cup of ale at him and missed.

"That's not fair!" Gunther pouted, folding his arms over his chest. "I wanted to dance with that beauty!"

"Did you have fun, Daunte?" Roen teased him.

Daunte didn't know if he should lie and say yes or be honest and say no. In the end he just shrugged.

"I think we've been sidetracked enough," Surya cut in. "Can we go and rescue my cousin now?"

"You have a point," Gunther admitted. "Let's get out of here and try and gather more information."

Aware of the guards searching the city, the group began a very careful reconnaissance of the city proper. Daunte was surprised that the city _did_ have quite a number of foreigners in it, and he noticed that the religious fanaticism in Baltas was a bit more…relaxed than it had been in K'alak'i Patieba.

"I use to go to the capital all the time, but in recent years it's hard to find any enjoyment in the city. It's so tense there—everyone is always on edge. No matter if it's a cleric or a noble or even a vassal!"

"I came to Nagarea from the Islands Nation Federation because we got a brochure in the mail boasting of it being a beautiful place. But the security here is very tight and I feel like I have no privacy! I sort of regret making the trip…"

"My son keeps making these outrageous claims! He said he said he saw soldiers carry five coffins into the city a few days ago! _Then_ he said that he said four of these same coffins be carried out just a few hours later! Children make up such silly stories, don't they?"

"It's true! Mama won't believe me, but I saw it! Five black coffins, all the same size! The guards were really sneaky about it too, bringing them in at night! But then they left again but I only counted four! And the guards were saying one was heavier than the others!"

Surya knelt down so that he was eye-level with the boy. "Did you see which directions the coffins were taken?"

"I watched them until they went out of sight, but they all stayed on the same path! It looked like they were heading south, either towards the Rocky Plains or the Bridge of Faith!"

 _That's not a lot of help._ Daunte sighed in disappointment.

"Hey," Gunther said after they left the child. He nodded towards a building with a sign showing a crystal ball. "Do any of you want to get a rune?"

"Oh yes!" Roen cheered. "I definitely want a Fire Rune!"

"Hopefully they'll have one which will improve the accuracy of my throw," Felicity said, stretching her arms.

Daunte almost wanted to have the runemaster check his True Rune, but he was worried that it would draw too much attention. In the end he stood back while Roen had a Fire Rune affixed to his left arm. "Do you have a rune to improve throwing accuracy?" Felicity asked the runemaster.

"Throwing accuracy?" the runemaster repeated. "It sounds like you're looking for the Kite Rune. Unfortunately I don't sell it here. I _believe_ the runemaster in Tenaga sells it, but I can't say for sure."

"Thank you." Felicity bowed slightly, but Daunte saw that she was frowning. He wondered if he should ask her what was wrong or if he should keep quietly. Ultimately he decided to speak. "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine." Felicity forced a smile at him. "I just want to improve myself and stay useful, that's all."

"You _are_ useful," Daunte told her. "Don't ever let anyone tell you otherwise."

"…Thank you." She dropped the smile, but her stance looked less tense now.

"Are you happy with your new rune, Roen?" Gunther asked as they left the rune shop.

"You bet! I've always wanted a Fire Rune!" Roen grinned at the vibrant red symbol on the back of his hand. "It's too bad though that I only have one spell available to me…"

"The more you use it, the stronger it'll become," Surya told him. "Let's keep searching. I vote that if we don't find any useful information by nightfall that we try breaking into the mayor's mansion. It's reckless, but I want to get to whichever one of my cousins is here as quick as possible."

"Completely understandable," Gunther said, nodding. He gestured down what looked like a residential street. "We haven't gone there yet. Maybe we'll overhear some gossip in people's houses?"

They traveled down the street, and Daunte noted that these house were large and very well-kept. The people who lived in the houses also looked rather wealthy. He glanced into one window and saw a family settling down for dinner. The scene felt like a knife to his gut however, and he quickly looked away.

"Hey," Surya said in a low voice. "Doesn't _that_ look suspicious?"

Daunte paused. All around them the house were earthy tones. However, just ahead of them was a house that was pearly white and decorated with beautiful flowers. And unlike the other houses, there was a guard stationed outside.

Rather, there were _two_ guards stationed outside.

"That _is_ mighty suspicious," Gunther said in a pleasant voice. "Why don't we investigate it?"

The group carefully approached the house, and Daunte looked at his surroundings to see if there was some way they could infiltrate the house. Unfortunately, he saw that the houses had been built so close together that there wasn't even enough room for alleyways between them.

 _Yet for some reason, there are two exclusive guards at this one house. Why?_

"Halt!"

Daunte froze. They were standing barely two meters away from the white house, but one of the guards still shouted at them. Up close, Daunte could see that the guards consisted of one man and one woman, and though they wore silver robes and round hoods their faces weren't covered.

"What is your business here?" it was the man who was speaking. He looked to be around Gunther's age, and he had the stocky body of a well-seasoned soldier. Light blue hair fell into his tanned face, but his dark eyes were glaring.

"Nigel, give it a rest," the female guard said. "These look like a bunch of poor kids." Strands of pale blonde hair were peeking out from underneath her hood, but despite her carefree words her green eyes were alert. She also looked to be in her twenties.

"Poor kids indeed," Gunther said, casually strolling up to them. "And we naturally gravitated towards this lovely house."

"So you thought you could just stroll inside without knocking?!" Nigel snapped. He was fingering the sword at his belt.

Gunther shrugged. "Isn't that what all great adventurers do? Invite themselves into people's houses?"

"You won't be allowed to enter _this_ house," the female guard told them curtly.

"Why not?" Surya stepped forward, glaring at her. "Are you hiding something here that you don't want to show anybody else?"

"What do you know of it?!" Nigel snapped suddenly. Alarm bells went off in Daunte's head and he readied his tekko. _That's it! One of the Falenan royals must be here!_

"Nigel, calm down," the woman said. She looked at the group. "This is a private residence. We don't need to give you a reason why you can't enter."

"A private residence that requires two guards?" Gunther asked them.

"You—"

"Nigel? Thea?"

Everyone jumped at this voice and looked up. There was a small balcony rail on the second floor and the windows opened. Daunte stiffened as someone leaned out and rested their arms on the rail. It was a woman with curly dark red hair, almost black, and a pale blue veil on her head. "I heard you both shouting. Is something the matter?"

"Not at all, my Lady," Nigel said, turning to look up at the woman. "These strangers were just leaving."

"Hmm." The woman leaned her chin on her arm. Daunte was unsettled by her demeanor. It seemed… _sultry_. Her body language and the way her violet eyes looked upon them made him uncomfortable. "What a bunch of cute boys. It's not very often I have so many gentlemen callers at once." She laughed huskily.

Daunte looked at Surya for confirmation about whether or not this woman was one of his cousins, but the prince shook his head at him. "Do you have any visitors now, my Lady?" Daunte asked her.

"How is that your business?!" Thea demanded.

The woman laughed again and shook her head. "Not at the moment, but I'll gladly open my doors to you."

"Well, that's settles it," Gunther said. He began moving towards the front door. "Let's g—"

"Maybe another time," Surya interrupted, grabbing Gunther by his arm. "If you'll excuse us then, we're in a hurry."

"Then hurry along," Nigel told him.

"Don't be a stranger!" the woman called out to them more casually. She even waved at them as they hurried down the street.

"Wait a second!" Roen said after they were out of sight from the house. "Aren't we going to search that house?"

"My cousins aren't there," Surya said, shaking his head. "By the demeanor of the guards, they're closely watching that woman and that woman alone."

"Oh, but shouldn't we have made sure?" Gunther whined at him. "It's rude to refuse such a beautiful lady!"

"Her window was open, and I heard nothing but silence from the house. Not to mention if she was hiding someone, she wouldn't have been so casual." Surya paused before he continued. "Something about her demeanor tells me that she's not a subtle person. If she was hiding one of my cousins then it would've been obvious."

"Oh, all right." Gunther huffed in disappointment. "I've been to this city dozens of times and _never_ have I seen such beautiful women before! Is this a sudden phenomenon, or are you guys just a _magnet_ for such lovely ladies?!"

"I don't exactly feel flattered by that assessment," Felicity said harshly.

"It's such a sha—OOH!" Gunther immediately perked up. "There's another one!"

Daunte followed his gaze. Several meters away a teenaged girl was looking around, as though she were lost. She wore her tawny hair in a bob-cut, and there was a light pink ribbon tied in a bow on her head. She wore a long overshirt of the same color as the ribbon that was entirely see-through over a solid black qipao that was very short. So short that the overshirt was actually _longer_ than the qipao. The girl look confused, and somewhat distressed as she continued to wander around, her amber eyes uncertain.

Surya suddenly broke away from the group and took off running after the girl. "Hey, Surya!" Roen shouted after him. The girl rounded a corner and Surya nearly did as well. But a sudden shriek caused him to stop in his tracks and the others ran after him.

"No! Please, don't hurt me!"

The group picked up the pace with this shout and caught up to Surya. He was still standing still, observing the scene playing out before him.

"You're acting suspicious AND you have no identification!" three guards had surrounded the girl, who was sitting meekly on the ground. "You're a spy, aren't you?!"

"I-I'm not!" the girl wailed. Tears stung her eyes and she raised her hands defensively. "I haven't done anything wrong!"

"Don't lie to us! You're obviously a foreign spy!" one of the guards grabbed her elbow. "Are you from Falena?! You are, aren't you?!"

"Please, just let me go!" the girl wailed.

"Enough of this," Gunther said harshly. He started to surge forward, but an arm reached out to block him. Daunte blinked with disbelief at Surya, who was watching the scene in front of them neutrally. "Don't stop me, Prince! I can't allow those thugs to abuse that girl!"

"Hang on one moment," Surya told them, glancing at them.

"You're coming with us!" the guard jerked the girl to her feet. She had ducked her head, but…her demeanor suddenly changing. Daunte realized she was no longer shrinking under them. She seemed to be… _readying_ herself.

That was when she spoke again, and in a strong voice. "I told you to let me go."

In an instant she tripped the guard, sending him sprawling. The other two drew their swords, but the girl suddenly whipped out a _naginata_ and quickly engaged the guards. Daunte's jaw dropped as this seemingly waifish girl single-handedly struck down the guards and soundly beat them into submission. She no longer had tears in her eyes. Her expression was harsh and unforgiving. He was shocked that this was the same girl who just seconds earlier had been easily knocked down by the guards.

Now the guards lay in injured heaps on the ground, groaning in pain.

"Now then," the girl said harshly, glaring at the guards on the ground around her. "Now that we've dispensed with the pleasantries, you're going to do exactly as I say." She grabbed one of the guards by his collar and pressed the blade of her naginata under his chin. "Where is the prince?"

"I-I don't know!" the guard sputtered.

" _Where is the prince_?!" the girl repeated in a dangerous tone. "Falena's prince! And don't lie to me! I know for a fact that the prince is here! So you had better tell me where he is, or you're going to be in a greater world of hurt than you are now!"

"T-The mansion!" the guard wailed finally. "He's at the mayor's mansion!"

Daunte couldn't find the words to say. But Surya suddenly stepped forward. "Mokuren," he addressed the girl.

The girl, Mokuren, started and quickly dropped the guard. "P-Prince?!" she turned around and her eyes went wide when she saw Surya. "Prince Surya!" she rushed forward and threw her arms around him. "I've finally found you! I was so afraid something had happened to you when they took you from us, but you're all right!"

"I am. Are _you_ all right?" he pushed her away so he could get a good look at her.

"Of course I am!" Mokuren puffed out her chest dramatically. "If I were to allow these simpletons to best me, it would be a total embarrassment!"

"But are you the only one here? Where are the others?"

Mokuren dropped her bravado and hung her head in shame. "We got separated. After they took you I chased them for several hours before I lost their trail. By that point I had run so far from our group that I couldn't get back to them and got lost! I only stumbled upon this city yesterday, and that's when I heard that a prince was here! I assumed it was _you_ , but—"

"Freyr," Surya cut in. He grabbed her shoulders. "Freyr is here?!"

"Since you're here, uncaptured, Prince Freyr is the only other prince that could be here."

"Uh, Surya?" Gunther cut in. "Who is this girl?"

"Oh, sorry." Surya stepped aside and brought Mokuren forward. "This is Mokuren. She's my personal bodyguard."

"Bodyguard?!" Felicity exclaimed. "B-But you look so young to be the bodyguard of a prince! You must have amazing skills!"

Mokuren shrugged. "If I was truly amazing, then my prince wouldn't have been captured in the first place. Oh!" she raised a hand to her forehead dramatically. "I am a disgrace to all bodyguards! I must report my failure to the Queen, and she—"

"Enough of the theatrics," Surya told her. "If Freyr is here, we need to get to him _now_."

"All right." Mokuren recovered from her dramatic spell and smiled at them. "I've been searching the city because I thought the mayor's mansion was too obvious a location and would be a trap. But as you all just heard, the prince really _is_ at the mayor's mansion."

"Well, that settles it," Gunther said. "To the mansion it is. Should we sneak in or make a grand entrance?"

"If we make too much noise, don't we run the risk of them spiriting the prince away?" Roen asked.

"Falenan princes don't have as much value as Falenan princesses," Surya said with brutal honesty. "Which is probably why Freyr was left here while my female cousins were taken elsewhere. It probably wouldn't matter _how_ we get into the mansion, just so long as we ensure Freyr's safety."

"I think," Daunte said finally, getting everyone's attention. "We should try sneaking into the mansion and not drawing more attention towards ourselves."

"Okay," Gunther said. "The mansion is to our northwest, so let's head there now."

"Hopefully Prince Freyr is still there," Felicity said softly.

* * *

Security was indeed heightened at the mansion as night fell. As they surveyed the compound and sized up the high walls, they were able to catch snippets of conversation.

"—so suddenly! Her Ladyship was very eager to go to the capital, wasn't she?"

"But her family is in Mlkwt Alsmwat, right? Maybe she just wanted a getaway with his Lordship and their children?"

"But I heard them shouting yesterday about something—"

"She's probably annoyed by the brat we have to keep watch over!"

"Yeah, he just won't ever shut up, will he?!"

 _That's probably Freyr,_ Daunte thought. _And if the town's mayor isn't even home, then it'll be even easier getting him back._

They found a quiet, unpatrolled area of the wall and scaled over the side. They quickly raced through the gardens, using the darkness to carefully maneuver around the side of the building. They looked into the rooms on the first floor and saw that each one had two guards in it.

 _He's probably on the second floor._ Daunte looked up towards those windows, and that was when he noticed the rain gutter downspout on the side of the mansion. The straps holding it in place were surprisingly large.

Surya noticed this too, and raced over to it. He grabbed the straps above his head and tugged hard. They didn't falter. He nodded and looked at the others. "Let's climb up here."

"Prince, let me go first," Mokuren asked him.

"Hang on, _I'll_ go first," Gunther said, gently pushing them aside. "I have seniority, you know."

"Sure," Roen muttered, and Daunte snorted.

One by one they made the careful climb up the downspout and towards the window above. Gunther went first, then Mokuren, and then Surya. Daunte noted with alarm that the downspout was starting to groan under the excessive weight as Felicity climbed. The girl seemed to notice as well and picked up the pace, followed by Roen.

Daunte was last, and his breath hitched as he felt the straps loosening dangerously under his weight. He was very worried about his lack of grip, and used most of his weight to steady himself on his feet. Roen reached the window above and reached for him. "Give me your hand, Daunte!"

"HEY!" a guard below them shouted. "Intruders!"

Daunte frantically climbed up the downspout as he heard the snapping of bows beneath him. He flinched as arrows pierced the building on all sides of him, and even the windowsill above. Surya ducked his body out and reached with Roen. "Hurry, Daunte!"

Daunte jumped from the strap, feeling it snap off the downspout, and reached for their hands. Surya and Roen grabbed him and dragged him up as the section of the downspout held by that strap gave way and fell to the ground.

"Are you all right, Daunte?!" Felicity knelt beside him as Roen slammed the window shut. "None of the arrows hit you, did they?!"

"I-I'm all right," Daunte said, scrambling to his feet.

"Guys?!" Gunther snapped.

Daunte looked up. It looked like they were in a large study, but over a dozen guards burst into the room with their weapons ready. "Where is my cousin?!" Surya demanded. "I know he's here!"

"I don't know what you're on about, boy, but you're not leaving this room alive!" the guard in front shouted.

It was a lengthy fight, but Daunte, Roen, Felicity mobilized to perform their 'Best Friends' unite attack. Surya and Mokuren also banded together for a unite attack aptly named 'Sworn Protector'. Mokuren surged forward first to attack a single target with her naginata, and Surya finished them off with his tri-nunchaku. In just a few short minutes, all of the soldiers were lying on the floor, seriously injured.

"Freyr?!" Surya shouted as they left the study. "Freyr, are you here?!"

"Kill the intruders!" another group of guards surrounded them, but the fight ended very quickly. They ducked into each room they saw, desperately looking for the prince, but all they found was more guards. After checking five rooms, Daunte began to get worried.

 _What if he isn't here? What if this was a trap?!_

Surya looked visibly distressed, indicating he was having the same thought process as Daunte. They found a staircase and almost steered downstairs when a muted shout from an unopened door got their attention. Surya hurried towards the door, but before he could get it open the door exploded off its hinges, and a soldier flew into the hallway. "Surya, I'm here!" a boy's voice called out.

"Freyr!" Surya and Mokuren rushed into the room, while the group took a moment to gape at the soldier sprawled on the floor. " _Damn_ ," Gunther said, whistling softly.

 _If one child delivered such a blow, then he's certainly cut out for becoming Commander of the Queen's Knight,_ Daunte thought amusedly.

"Freyr, are you all right?! Did they hurt you?!" Surya was examining a boy who looked to be thirteen or fourteen years old. The boy had dark hair, though not as dark as Surya's, and dark blue eyes. He was dressed very similarly to Surya, although he was dressed in silver and green and not blue and white, and he had a very determined look on his face. "I'm fine, Surya. Do you know where my sisters are?"

Surya shook his head. "They were brought here with Archana and Kaylani, but—"

"Archana and Kaylani were also kidnapped?!" Freyr exclaimed. "Why?! And _how_ , even?! _We_ were in Sol-Falena, but Archana was on route to Lordlake, and wasn't Kaylani in Lunas?!"

"I don't know any more than you do. You're the first we've found. All we know at this point is that the girls were taken out of this city and elsewhere."

Freyr shook his head. "This is insane. I _know_ Farrin and Signe were taken with me, but when I woke up they were gone! And I've been locked in this room for days! When I heard your voice I knew it was the right time to escape!"

"Good." Surya ruffled the hair on his head and stood back up. "Guys, this is my cousin, Freyr Falenas. As you can tell by…" he gestured to the prone guard. "He can pack a punch."

"Who're they?" Freyr asked.

Surya introduced him to everyone, finishing with, "They've agreed to help me find all of you."

Freyr's eyes went wide. After a moment he managed a smile. "G-Good. Thank you so much!"

Daunte shrugged. "It's no problem."

"I hate to interrupt, but we've overstayed our welcome," Gunther said. He still had his talwar sword out and glanced out into the hallway. "We've beaten up quite a few of the guards and made a right mess out of the mayor's home, but we should probably flee Baltas as soon as possible."

"I agree," Surya said. He looked at Freyr. "It's time to go. We'll get you out of here safely, I swear it."

"I'll be fine," Freyr said, waving a dismissive hand. "I can handle myself."

"That's reassuring kid, but we're going to have to ask you to sit this fight out." Gunther grinned at him. "You see, we've worked so hard to rescue you that we're not going to put you at risk and make our hard work go to waste."

"I'll be fine," Freyr said defensively. "I can fight—"

"Prince, just let us handle this," Mokuren interrupted him. "We know you can fight, but let us fight this battle for you."

Freyr huffed irritably, but his shoulders drooped in defeat. " _Fine_."

"Good, let's get out of here," Daunte said, readying his tekko.

* * *

As many of the soldiers had scattered to look for the suspicious couple earlier, and because they'd beaten up so many of the guards, the escape out of Baltas was anti-climatically easy. None of the citizens even gave them a second glance as they ran past them, despite their disheveled appearances.

They didn't stop running even after they got to their horses. They were saddling up when a shout reached the guards at the gate and they left their posts to rush back into the city. Freyr climbed into the saddle with Surya, and despite getting an offer to share a ride with Gunther, Mokuren climbed behind Felicity and they rode off into the darkness. They didn't stop riding until Baltas was out of sight, and even then rode for a little while longer before they allowed themselves to relax.

"Okay," Gunther said as they brought their horses to a stop. "One down, four to go. We're still close to the Nagarean-Falenan border. Do you want to send the young prince over the border?"

"I'm not leaving without my sisters," Freyr said hotly.

"The land border was destroyed, remember?" Surya added. "It was nigh impossible for us to navigate it and into Nagarea."

"But you succeeded, didn't you?" Roen pointed.

"Yes, and two people in our rescue party _died_ because of the dangerous conditions. I'm not taking that risk with Freyr, no way."

"You could always sail up the coastline," Felicity said.

"But the Holy Army is probably already anticipating that," Gunther said. "I think the best option at this point would be to take him back with us to the headquarters. Lord Bearyl would _surely_ give asylum to a prince."

"I'll go with you," Freyr agreed. "Even if you tried to send me away, I'm not returning home without Farrin or Signe. _Or_ Archana or Kaylani."

"We should keep riding then," Daunte said. "They'll scour the countryside looking for us, and we'll probably have an easier time crossing the Bridge of Faith with Freyr when it's still dark."

"Excellent points, Daunte." Gunther smiled at him. "You have a good head for this type of work."

"I-I just thought I was being practical," Daunte said embarrassedly, ducking his head.

"Then let's go," Surya said, steering his horse. "The sooner we get back, the sooner we can hopefully find more leads as to where our family is."

 _Hopefully they're all somewhere we can rescue them from just as easily as we rescued Freyr,_ Daunte thought.

* * *

Tenaga. It was the largest city of the Northeastern provinces and it had a population size of thirty-five thousand people. It was the third most populated city in Nagarea, Uaminifu being second and Mlkwt Alsmwat of course being first.

It was early morning. Approaching the gates of Tenaga from the northwest was the main battalion unit of the Northeast, numbering fifty people. Most of the soldiers wore silver, but at the front of the group rode two riders in white, one further out in front than the other. The one who was further back had very slight points on his hood and his face was uncovered, showing the calm face of a man in his mid-twenties. Thick yellow bangs fell into his hazel eyes, but he looked alert.

Ahead of him was another man roughly the same age, but the points on _his_ hood were very pronounced and his face was covered, and the emblems on his chest identified him as a Sheikh. Jet black bangs fell over only one of his dark blue eyes, but he looked equally alert as he signaled to the party behind him to pause as they reached the gate.

"Identify yourselves!" the guard called from the post above.

"Sheikh Keiran Umed, here on orders from the capital," the Sheikh called back up to him. "I'm here with my second-in-commander, Mihr." He indicated the man behind him. "And my main unit." He indicated the soldiers lined up behind them.

The soldier's eyes went wide. "S-S-Sheikh! Forgive me, sir, for not opening the gate immediately for you!"

"It's fine, soldier. You're only doing your job." Keiran glanced over his shoulder. "Lanny."

"Sir?" the teenager brought his horse forward as the guards scrambled to open the gate. His gray eyes were shining, and he clearly looked eager to please.

"Ride ahead and tell the mayor that we've arrived."

"Yes, sir." Lanny took off riding into the city as the gates opened for them.

"It's still hard to believe the rumors were true," Mihr said quietly.

"It is," Keiran agreed. "But I was given a direct order by the Cabinet, and I must follow it."

Mihr steered his horse alongside Keiran's to speak with him privately. "I fear the capital may be inciting war with Falena with their actions."

"There must be a specific reason why they kidnapped the Falenan royals like this. However, as soldiers it's not our job to understand the thought put into political decisions. All we can do is trust that the High Clerics have a rational explanation for doing this."

"There's nothing rational about kidnapping children, sir."

Keiran hesitated, and looked upwards towards the guards at their posts. He studied their expressions and could tell they hadn't heard what Mihr had said. " _Please_ be careful what you say," he admonished his subordinate. "Ever since the High Clerics broadened the legal definition of blasphemy, people have been getting arrested for saying virtually anything negative against the government. With your rank you wouldn't be arrested so easily, but it will draw attention towards you. And me."

"…Understood," Mihr said after a moment, but Keiran could still see the disapproval of their actions in his expression.

The mayor's mansion was located at the back of Tenaga, but the citizens recognized Keiran and came out in droves to greet him. They were reaching out to touch him, and some even tried to give him gifts. While Keiran was flattered by handmade items, he felt uneasy when people offered him food or chickens as gifts. His Garrison was always well-stocked with necessary supplies, and he didn't feel the need to take necessities from people less fortunate than him.

 _I hope these people don't feel like they owe me anything. I may keep them safe, but I don't need extra tributes from them. They already pay enough in taxes._

"You're very popular, as usual," Mihr mused. As expected though, many people showered _him_ with presents as well.

When they finally reached the mayor's mansion, Keiran's arms were full of gifts, and he had to hand them off to one of his soldiers before dismounting his horse. "Sheikh Umed!" the mayor greeted him enthusiastically. "We've been expecting you!"

"We're sorry for keeping you waiting, sir," Keiran greeted him, accepting his handshake.

"No, there's no trouble at all! But everything is ready for you, sir."

"How is she?" Keiran asked as they headed into the mansion.

"Oh, she's fine." The man laughed, but Keiran noted that his expression was strained. "She hasn't made a fuss at all! Would you like to speak to her?"

"Of course. I want to make sure she understands we mean no harm to her."

The mayor led up the stairs to the second floor and guided them to a bedroom that had two guards posted on either side of the door. He knocked on the door. "Princess Kaylani? May we come in?"

"…Yes," came a delayed reply from the other side of the door.

The mayor smiled at Keiran. "Go on in, sir."

Keiran nodded and opened the door. "Princess Kaylani?" he entered the room, followed by Mihr, but he only took five steps into the room before he stopped dead in his tracks.

"You're the Sheikh they told me about?" the twenty-three year old princess of Falena slowly rose from the bed. Her dark silver hair was worn very long in the front, the tied strands coming down to her waist, while in the back it was worn short to her shoulders. Her face was very youthful, and she looked like she was a teenager and not a woman in her twenties, but her dark blue eyes held deep worry.

But it was the rest of her appearance that unsettled Keiran. She was dressed in a hanbok dress with a light purple _Jeogori_ and dark blue _Chima_. But even with the shapeless clothing, there was no disguising her physical condition.

Keiran abruptly turned on his heel and left the door. Mihr followed and closed the door behind them. "I'm sorry, sir, but I can't take her with me," Keiran announced.

"W-What?!" the mayor sputtered. He looked a little frightened. "S-Sir, I received orders from the capital that you are supposed to take custody of her!"

"I realize that, but I will not take her with me," Keiran said. "Have you seen her condition, sir? My Garrison is not equipped to handle her condition."

"B-B-But you must take her!" the mayor pleaded. "We can't possibly _keep_ her!"

"You have all the resources here in Tenaga to take care of her," Keiran reassured him. "But I cannot and I _will_ not take her back to my Garrison with me. Not only is there a real risk of her time coming while on route to my Garrison, but also my doctors are not equipped to take care of her. I know I'm imposing on you, but I must insist you keep her here."

"B-B-But what am I supposed to tell the capital when they ask for an update on our exchange?!"

Keiran shrugged. "Tell them the truth. Tell them I refused to take custody of a pregnant princess who is due any day now."

* * *

"So we _aren't_ taking her with us?" Lanny asked as they began to depart the city.

"No, of course not," Keiran said. "The princess looks due to give birth at any time. I know I was given a direct order, but I won't have her health and safety—and the health and safety of her child—on my conscience. She will be much better off in Tenaga, and they are better equipped to handle her condition than we are."

Lanny sighed shortly. "They…they really kidnapped a _pregnant princess_?"

"It's none of our concern, Lanny. Ride on ahead and warn the Garrison that we're returning empty-handed."

"Y-Yes, sir." Lanny quickly took off.

"You're disobeying a direct order from the High Clerics," Mihr told him warningly. "They won't forget this."

"Probably," Keiran said. "But I'm not going to forget my honor. And there's nothing honorable about keeping a hostage in her condition."

"They may…separate the mother and child once she gives birth."

"I sincerely hope that doesn't happen." But his hands tightened around the reins of his horse as he said it.

* * *

Desiree's style of dancing (and fighting) is Capoeira in nature, so you can see how Daunte was not able to easily keep up with her.


	9. Chapter One: Part Nine

As a reminder, the Chiyu Star poll closes in two weeks, so make sure you get your vote in before then.

* * *

Part Nine

 _Mokuren sure likes to talk…doesn't she?_

That was the only thing Daunte could really surmise about the eccentric girl. They rode all night and into the dawn. They crossed the Bridge of Faith without incident and steered back towards the Liberation Army's headquarters.

And not once did Mokuren pause in her babbling. From what he could gather from the information she shared with them was that she had known Surya virtually her whole life. She kept mentioning something about "family obligation" but she never once referred to her family by name. And she liked talking about how "cute" of a big sister Farrin was to Signe.

Daunte glanced at Felicity and saw that the other girl looked exhausted from the nonstop babbling behind her. Everyone else looked equally exhausted…except for Surya. His expression showed that Mokuren's behavior was in no way out of the ordinary, and he didn't look bothered by it. Freyr looked mildly annoyed however, but Daunte could also tell by his expression that the boy was used to it.

They stopped for a brief rest, and Daunte was relieved for the silence. Then they were back on the road to headquarters.

It was late afternoon when they finally arrived. Both Mokuren and Freyr actually looked charmed by the somewhat dilapidated castle, but Daunte was very eager to go down and check on Arin and see how his brother was doing.

 _He'll be upset he couldn't get to go to Baltas, but I'll take him with me when everything cools down._ He smiled at this thought as he grabbed his things from his horse.

"Lieutenant!" an Army soldier frantically ran down the stairs towards them. "Lieutenant, please hurry! The Lord Commander wants to see you immediately!"

"Oh, great," Gunther huffed, shrugging his bag onto his shoulder.

"You _did_ disobey a direct order," Surya reminded him quietly.

"Ah." The soldier looked at Mokuren and Freyr. "D-Did you bring back more recruits?"

"No, this is the prince we rescued from Baltas," Gunther said, gesturing to Freyr. "Kid, welcome to the Liberation Army."

"O-Oh that reminds me!" the Army burst out. "Falenans! Falenans just arrived an hour ago!"

" _What_?!" Surya shouted. "Why didn't you say so in the first place?! Where are they?!"

"I-In the war room. But—"

Surya took off running up the stairs, quickly followed by Mokuren and Freyr. Felicity laughed and looked at Daunte. "We'd better hurry after them, huh?"

"Right," Daunte said. _I guess I'll have to put off seeing Arin for a little while longer._

The rest of them hurried after the three Falenans. Daunte heard the castle chatter around them as they ran up the stairs. The soldiers and civilians seemed rather excited about the appearance of the Falenans.

 _Maybe it's more Queen's Knights. Or even better, maybe it's the rest of Surya's cousins!_

Though this hope diminished somewhat with the conversation Daunte picked up.

"—so handsome, polite, and so eloquent with his speech! He's the perfect package!"

"—haven't seen one of _those_ in years!"

"Lord Bearyl seems annoyed with all the Falenans, though—"

"—just keep popping out of the woodwork, don't they?"

They managed to catch up to Surya right in front of the war room, just in time for Surya to tap on the door with an open palm. "Lord Bearyl?" he called out.

"Come in," came the reply.

Surya quickly pushed open the doors and hurried inside. Daunte followed, eager to see who was inside.

"Perfect timing," Bearyl Lutis called out to them from the table in the back. Daunte recognized Varnaz standing with Bearyl, along with Caesar, but there were two strangers standing with their backs to them. "Some of your friends have arrived, Prince Surya."

"Prince Surya." A tall dark-haired man in his late twenties turned and hurried towards them. He had a white bandana around his head and he was dressed in a rather elaborate outfit that looked loose on his body, but he was wearing lithe body armor that was visible underneath his silver overcoat. The hilt of his sword was peeking out from behind his right shoulder, and Daunte saw that the scabbard was longer than the length of his body. "Prince Surya, thank goodness you're alive! Please forgive me for this inexcusable negligence that allowed you to be captured!" he bowed deeply.

"General Israfil, I don't blame you," Surya told the man. "It was a crazy situation beyond our control. It wasn't your fault at all!"

Israfil straightened, but there was still deep stress in his dark eyes. "I will still report my failure to the Her Majesty the Queen."

"Hey, my family isn't lost to us yet so you haven't failed!" Surya scoffed and scrubbed a hand through his hair before looking around Israfil at the second individual. "Silvano, are you okay?"

"No. But I'll feel better after I find Kaylani." A second figure slowly approached them. It was a man in his mid-twenties dressed in a dark green outfit. The tunic was long enough to reach his knees, and his tanned boots covered his green pants and were high enough to reach his knees. He wore a unique brown half-vest that had large shoulder pads that extended in either side of him. Daunte looked up at his face and started slightly. Silvano strikingly dark violet eyes, and a mop of long dark red hair on his head.

And his ears were… _pointed_.

"Let me introduce you guys," Surya said. He turned to face the group. "Guys, these two were in Mokuren and mine's group when we snuck into Nagarea." he gestured to the dark-haired man. "This is General Israfil Raulbel, Captain of Sable's Defense Corps back home."

"Thank you for keeping Prince Surya safe, and for rescuing Prince Freyr," Israfil greeted. He bowed again to the group. "It's a pleasure meeting all of you."

He was so proper and sincere with his speech that Daunte almost laughed awkwardly. But he shook it off and bowed in kind.

"And this is my cousin-in-law," Surya said, indicating the second man. "My cousin Kaylani's husband, Silvano. Er…" his brow furrowed. "I'm sorry Silvano, but I still haven't gotten the hang of your last name."

"Silvano Shana Ques Laviankaana," Silvano offered kindly. "I'm the son of the Chief Kirkis of the Elves of _Lukiae Ende Towayo_ in the Toran Republic. It's nice to meet you all."

Daunte was embarrassed to still find himself gaping. _I've never seen an elf in my life. So this means Surya's cousin, a princess, is married to an elf? And pregnant by an elf?_

"I was surprised though, Silvano," Caesar said. He was smiling as he left the table and approached Silvano. "I'd heard that you had left Lukiae Ende Towayo in order to get married, but I never expected that you were able to nab a Falenan _princess_."

"Kaylani is technically a _lady_ and not a princess, Caesar," Silvano corrected him. "It was a tough decision to leave the forests of the Toran Republic, but I understood the responsibilities she held in Falena and I didn't want to be parted from her. But even now I'm glad I made the decision to leave and go live in Falena. I love my parents and cherish my people, but I don't want to be anyplace else than by my wife's side."

"Well, at least you had the full blessing of your parents. Most elves are unfortunately _not_ so liberal-minded as Chief Kirkis and Sylvina."

"These are my current companions," Surya said, introducing Daunte and the others to Israfil and Silvano before continuing. "But where are the others in our group? A-Are you two the only ones left?"

"…Yes," Israfil said reluctantly. "We're the only ones left. We were ambushed and overwhelmed by enemy soldiers. We got the upper hand in the ensuing fight, but then the soldiers drank a potion, and…" he shuddered slightly. "The two of us barely escaped with our lives."

That sounded suspiciously similar to Daunte. Surya noticed too, and pulled out the vial he'd taken from his own encounter with the Holy Army soldiers. "Did they drink from a vial like this?"

" _Exactly_ like this," Silvano said, taking the vial from Surya. "It turned them all into violent, raving lunatics. The only reason Israfil and I even survived is because the soldiers dropped dead a few minutes after taking the potion."

"It must be _Raging Nostrum_ ," Caesar said. Everyone turned to look at him and the young man shrugged. "You might be familiar with the stories about it, Prince Surya. From what I've learned it surfaced on the black market here in Nagarea over thirty years ago. It started off small, like some sort of forbidden fruit people were curious to try. Never mind the fact that it can and it _will_ kill you. But in the last decade or so it's become more mainstream."

"When I was a Cleric I'd never even heard of it," Bearyl admitted softly. "But not long after I was… _dismissed_ , all of a sudden it became a popular topic of conversation amongst recruits in the Holy Army. Some people couldn't help their curiosity and took it, but all it did was kill them and kill anybody who was around them."

"But where did it come from?" Daunte asked.

"The Falenas royal family used to employ an assassin group called Nether Gate," Caesar supplied for them. "Nether Gate loved experimenting with drugs and potions in order to craft their assassins to be the perfect killing machines. Raging Nostrum was designed as a last-resort drug in case an assassin got cornered so they could kill as many people as possible before they succumbed to the deadly effects of the drug." Caesar shook his head. "Of course Prince Surya and Freyr, your grandmother Queen Arshtat abolished Nether Gate after a rather bloody succession crisis, and the assassins all scattered to the winds. Unsurprisingly a few of them took up residence here in Nagarea and have been selling their _fine wares_ to unsuspecting fools looking to have more power."

"How do you know so much about the history of my country?" Surya asked him.

Caesar shrugged. "I wouldn't be very qualified for this job if I wasn't well-informed, would I? But in any case, if the common soldiers of the Holy Army have Raging Nostrum, then they've either found a reliable illegal source to purchase Raging Nostrum from…or the Theocracy has created a variant of their own to give to their soldiers."

So the Theocracy was not only using the Nagarist Religion to force people in submission, but they were also giving their _own soldiers_ deadly drugs. But why would they have given Raging Nostrum to their own soldiers when they had no enemies to fight? Everything with the True Rune and the kidnappings of the royal family had all occurred within a short period of time!

 _They must be planning something big, if they're giving that awful stuff to their own soldiers in advance._

"But not everybody in the Holy Army has Raging Nostrum," Caesar continued. He looked thoughtful. "Only some of the lower-ranked units keep it on hand. So either the Theocracy is selectively giving out Raging Nostrum to who they deem to be _expendable_ soldiers, or the Theocracy isn't even involved at all in the distribution of Raging Nostrum and these units are purchasing it on the black market."

"I can't imagine the Theocracy would voluntarily give out an abomination like Raging Nostrum to their own soldiers," Israfil said. "While it allows them to turn into killing machines, they also die after ingesting it. It would be counterintuitive of them to supply it to their own Army."

"One would think so, General," Caesar agreed. "However, the government continues to surprise us with their…methods."

"Excuse me," Silvano interjected. The young man had deep stress lines in his face. "I understand the seriousness of Raging Nostrum, but I want to focus on the task at hand. I can see that Surya and Freyr were successfully rescued—"

"Well, it wasn't _really_ a rescue on my part," Surya said. "We just escaped from the Dark, Chasm, is all."

"But that still leaves four royals missing, including my wife." Silvano shook his head. "T-The healers at Lunas told us last week that Kaylani had roughly two weeks left at the very most before she would give birth. I need to find her before she that happens. But I know nothing about this country—I mean, it was pure accident that Israfil and I even found this place! Do we know _anything_ about where she might have been taken?! Or where any of the others were taken?!"

"They all arrived in the town of Baltas together," Surya supplied for him. "Freyr was left in Baltas and the others were taken south. However, we don't know if they headed south to enter the Southeastern provinces or if they headed south to cross the Bridge of Faith to access the Northern provinces."

"There must be _something else_! Rumors exist for a reason, don't they?" Silvano wrung a hand through his hair helplessly. "I have to find her! If I don't get to her in time…"

Daunte felt bad for him. He'd never been in a situation like Silvano's so he didn't know what to properly say to the elf. But he didn't want to simply remain quiet while he was so distressed.

"Silvano," he said finally.

Silvano looked at him. Daunte gulped briefly, feeling a little embarrassed, before he continued. "We'll find her, Silvano. We'll find her, and we'll find the others. I swore to Surya I would help him find his family, so you have my cooperation. We'll find K—Lady Kaylani before she has her baby."

Silvano's features softened, but only slightly. "You said your name was Daunte, right?" he nodded and forced a sad smile. "Thank you, Daunte."

"I understand you mean well, but you have your responsibilities to the Liberation Army, Daunte."

Daunte looked up. Bearyl was staring at him with a look of disapproval. "I would rather you not make promises you can't keep, Daunte. I allowed you to accompany Prince Surya to Baltas, but I did not approve of any further action. For future reference, you need to clear any and all non-Army activities with me."

Daunte gaped at him and flushed. So…Bearyl was implying he only allowed Daunte to rescue _one_ of Surya's cousins? But Daunte had been so _sure_ that Bearyl had okayed him giving his full cooperation to Surya! Had he misunderstood what Bearyl's orders were?

" _I give you permission to assist Prince Surya."_

Daunte was sure that Bearyl had said that, _and_ he was sure that he'd told Bearyl that he'd promised to find _all_ the members of Surya's family. So then why was the Commander ordering him to stand down?

"…I apologize, sir." He kept his voice low and bowed. He didn't want to look at anyone. "I must have misunderstood your orders. But may I please assist Surya to find the rest of his family?"

"I understand how dire the situation is," Bearyl said. "But you're a Liberation Army recruit and you haven't paid your dues to my Army. I feel I've been very lenient with my handling of you, but I can't allow you to just do whatever you want, Daunte."

"Sir, I—"

"What exactly makes you think you're special enough to be of any use to the Falenans? Are you a seasonally trained soldier? Do you have combat experience? Can you even control the Rune on your hand? What special skill can you contribute to their cause that they can't simply find in someone else?"

His points were valid, and it infuriated Daunte. _Is this how he speaks to everyone who serves beneath him? I honestly thought he gave me permission to see this through to the end. How was I supposed to know that he meant I could only participate in one mission?_

"With all due respect, sir," Felicity spoke up suddenly. "I was here when we asked your permission to assist Surya, and I also thought you gave us permission to help him find his entire family."

"I said no such thing," Bearyl said. His expression hardened and he folded his arms over his chest. "Don't ever question my authority again, Felicity. Doing so in front of foreigners makes a mockery of my Army."

Felicity turned crimson and also ducked her head. "I-I…please forgive me, sir."

Bearyl focused on Surya. "If my soldiers made you false promises in my name, I apologize on their behalf. I will continue to open my headquarters to your family for safe haven. Have you received any word from your Queen yet?"

"No," Surya said. He was glaring at Bearyl.

Bearyl shook his head, seeming not to notice the glare. "Then I'm afraid my hands are still tied with the further help I can supply for you."

"W-Wait," Freyr sputtered incredulously, stepping forward. "You _won't_ help us find my sisters?!"

"I hope you understand, young Prince," Caesar said. "There is too much uncertainty for us to move forward at this time. Our numbers pale in comparison to the Holy Army's, and we don't know what the Queen, your mother, will do next. She may ransom all of you. She may even forge an alliance with the Theocracy. Until we get more information, there's too many risks."

"I understand that," Surya said curtly. "But I still request the help of these four." He gestured to Daunte, Felicity, Roen, and Gunther. "Their help in rescuing Freyr was appreciated. I'm sure you can spare the four of them to assist the four of us." He gestured to Mokuren, Israfil, Silvano, and himself.

"Don't forget me," Freyr added. Surya ignored him. "We'll pay you for their services."

"Your potch is no good here in Nagarea," Bearyl reminded him. "I must put these three to work on Army matters, and Gunther has been suspended for the next month."

" _Suspended_?!" Gunther spat out. His eyes widened in shock. "S-Sir—"

"I told you that you weren't allowed to leave. I _ordered_ you to stay put, and you disobeyed my command. You're lucky I'm not demoting you down to __Corporal__. Varnaz, confiscate the Lieutenant's weapon so he doesn't get any more wild ideas about leaving again."

Varnaz stepped forward and held out his hands to Gunther. "Your sword."

Gunther stared back at him for a long moment. Surya was giving Gunther a look that clearly said "I told you so". Once the moment passed, Gunther scoffed and quickly unstrapped the talwar sword from his waist. He slammed it into Varnaz's unflinching hands and stormed out of the war room.

Surya huffed and looked back at Bearyl. "Well, since you're offering us the bare minimum help would you mind if I ask if you've heard anything about my family."

"There was commotion at Tenaga this morning," Caesar offered up. "The main unit of the Northeastern forces rode to Tenaga for what was rumored to be a…"pick up". However, they left empty handed."

 _If the main unit went to Tenaga, then that explains why we had no problem crossing the Bridge of Faith again,_ Daunte surmised.

"They didn't pick anything—or any _one_ up?!" Surya said. He looked at Mokuren. "One of my cousins must be in Tenaga then. Which direction is that in?"

"Tenaga is _southwest_ of here," Bearyl told them. "It's not as fortified as Sheikh Umed's Garrison, it's still a city with tight security. Be careful."

"We've wasted enough time," Silvano said, turning towards the door. "We need to get going and find out who's there."

"Absolutely," Israfil said.

Daunte knew his hands were tied, but he didn't want to leave things as they were. "M-My Lord!" he marched in front of Bearyl and bowed again. "I know I'm not a soldier! I know I'm not anything special, and my being chosen by this Rune was probably a fluke! But I've come with this far with Surya and I want to help him see this through to the end! Please, allow me to continue assisting them!"

His plea caused everyone in the room to pause, including Silvano. Daunte kept his eyes on the floor and silently prayed. _Please Nagar! Please allow me this chance!_

"Daunte, I can't do that," Bearyl told him flatly. "I already have an assignment for three of you. I can't just—"

"Let me do it."

Daunte looked over his shoulder. Roen was staring at Bearyl with a leveled look. "I'll take on both Daunte and Felicity's responsibilities here, and work hard enough in their absence. So please, Lord Bearyl, allow them to go with Surya."

Bearyl looked surprised by his offer. "I don't think you realize the workload you face."

Roen didn't even flinch. "Whatever you throw at me can't be any worse than what I've already suffered in the Dark Chasm."

"Excellent point," Caesar spoke up suddenly. "You have to admire the resiliency of these kids, my Lord. All things considered, their absence will hardly be detrimental to the Army."

Bearyl looked at his strategist. "Caesar—"

"Remember that they're not special and lack the skills of other recruits," Caesar told him. "So what does it matter if they leave? The Army won't fall apart without them here, will it?"

"…Of course not." Bearyl looked back at Daunte. "All right, then. Daunte and Felicity, I give you permission to assist them. And Roen, go downstairs to the lower levels and see Jantu. He's already been informed about what you'll be working on."

"Roen, are you sure?" Felicity asked softly, turning around to face him. Daunte was also surprised by Roen's offer. Roen had been the most reluctant of the three of them to join the Liberation Army.

"It's fine," Roen said to them. He offered them a smile. "Besides Felicity, you still want to get that Kite Rune, right? The runemaster in Baltas said it was in Tenaga, so you should definitely go with these guys and get it. Just stay safe guys, okay?"

"You too." Felicity gave him a quick hug. Daunte didn't like the uncomfortable feeling in his stomach as Roen hurried from the room. After being around Roen for so long, it felt strange to be apart from him.

 _We'll make it back, though. We'll find whichever of Surya's cousins is in Tenaga and bring them back with us._

"So it will be the six of you heading out," Caesar surmised, looking them over. "Silvano, I hate to tell you this but I would recommend you cover your ears before leaving."

"Cover my ears?" Silvano asked. "Why?"

"Twelve years ago there was a Plague that ravaged the Southern provinces near the Red Tundra, most predominantly the town of Farna," Bearyl told him. Felicity flinched at his words. "There was quite a loss of human life, but the elven population that naturally inhabited that region was virtually wiped out."

Silvano's eyes went wide at this news, and his mouth hung open in shock. Daunte was equally horrified. He'd known what the Plague had done to the town of Farna, but _never_ had he heard what it'd done to the elves. Bearyl continued. "Of Nagarea's elf population, which twenty years ago was just over three hundred elves, it's estimated that less than _ten_ elves are still alive today."

"What this means is that no human in Nagarea has seen an elf in over a decade," Caesar added. "The elves that survived the Plague went into hiding. The minute the people of Tenaga set their eyes upon you, Silvano, you guys are going to be _mobbed_. Since you're going there with discretion, I'm sure you don't want draw attention to yourselves."

"Silvano, if you—" Surya began.

"I'm not staying behind," Silvano said sharply. "I've come too far to be scared of such things! I will find my wife, and nobody can stop me! I'll put on a hat or wrap a scarf around my head if I must, but I _will_ go to Tenaga!"

"A scarf might be better for your ears," Caesar said quietly.

"I don't understand why you guys won't let me go with you," Freyr protested. "I won't be a burden to you!"

"I understand, Freyr, but you can't come with us because you were a target." Surya rested his hands on the boy's shoulders. "They only kidnapped me at the last minute, but _you_ were always an intended target. I can't put you in the kind of danger that will get you captured again."

"But I have no value as a hostage!" Freyr fumed, wringing a hand through his hair. "They only wants the girls, I know it! So you don't need to worry about me!"

"You have enough value though that they kidnapped you anyway," Mokuren pointed out. "Please Prince, we ask that you remain here while we rescue your sisters and your cousins."

"Besides," Surya said. "We have to go get identification books for Mokuren, Silvano, and General Israfil. The forger is a bit…crotchety, and if we bring too many requests to her at once she will think we're antagonizing her."

"Identification books?" Silvano echoed.

Surya quickly relayed the importance of the books and Silvano scoffed. "That sounds unnecessarily complicated."

"But it will probably be the only way any of you get into Tenaga," Caesar said. "Make sure to see Gizli before you, and be careful all of you."

"Yes," Bearyl added, going back to the table. "Do be careful."

* * *

While Mokuren, Silvano, and Israfil went down to see Gizli for forged identification books, Daunte took the opportunity to go and see Arin. He felt he could trust Clara to take care of his brother, but he couldn't stop the worry from eating away at him.

 _Please be better!_

"Hello, Daunte."

Daunte let out a shaky breath of relief as he entered the infirmary. Arin was sitting up in bed, fully awake and looking completely alert. The color in his face looked even healthier than when he suffered his relapse. Daunte rushed to his side. "How are you feeling?"

" _Much_ better," Arin said, smiling brightly at him. "The doctor said I'm not fully healed yet, but it doesn't hurt to breathe anymore, and I'm not coughing as much as I was before."

"The cleaner air and the more sterile environment of this infirmary has helped to clear his lungs," Clara said as she approached them. She pressed her palm to Arin's forehead and held her other palm to her own head. "He still has a light fever, but my Flowing Rune has been sufficient in nursing him back to health."

"Thank you," Daunte said. He stood and bowed. "Thank you for everything, Clara."

Clara waved a hand. "I'm just doing my duty as a doctor. But speaking of which, can I ask who Arin's primary physician was before you arrived here? He was in very poor health, but there doesn't seem to be scarring on his lungs from his illness. Whoever provided for him didn't utilize a rune, but I do detect remnants of powerful potions that were administered to him."

"Dr. Yulin," Daunte said. "He was the doctor of the Dark Chasm. A-And he couldn't have used a Rune because they confiscated his Water Rune."

Clara's eyes went wide. "D-D-Doctor Yulin? _The_ Dr. Yulin?!"

"Yes."

Clara shook her head. "I-I had heard rumors that Dr. Yulin volunteered to work at the Dark Chasm, but I didn't know if those were true or not! I-I mean, he's one of the best surgeons in the country—m-maybe even _the_ best surgeon Nagarea has seen in years! His work is what inspired me to go into medicine!"

"He helped us escape," Daunte said grimly, sitting back down. "I…I hope they didn't hurt him for doing that."

"I guess I was very sick," Arin said softly. He looked at Clara. "I-I don't think there was a lot Dr. Yulin could've done for me, but are you saying I could've been _much_ worse if it hadn't been for him?"

Daunte was also surprised. The Dark Chasm had really limited Dr. Yulin in the care he could provide for the children, but he'd really given it everything he had. And knowing that Arin could've been even _worse_ without his help…Daunte clenched his hand into a fist. _No matter what, I'll liberate that place and I'll rescue the other children and Dr. Yulin!_

"Sometimes I wished _I'd_ also volunteered there," Clara said softly. She put her hands behind her back. "I pledged myself to the Liberation Army's cause _because_ of government policies such as this. But sometimes I feel like I don't do enough to make a difference."

"You've done enough," Daunte told her. "And we're grateful to you for it."

Clara managed a small smile. "Thank you."

"All right, we're all set!"

Daunte stood up as Surya and the others entered the infirmary. Daunte saw that Felicity was smiling humorously and reflexively smiled back. "Did you get your books?"

"Yes, we did," Surya said. "And I managed to distract Freyr with an arena pit on the lower level, so we can head out at any time."

"Ms. Gizli is…very eccentric," Israfil said slowly, flipping through his book.

"I'm use to eccentric people," Silvano added. He'd found a light green scarf and had wrapped it around his head to cover up his elven ears.

"What a rude woman," Mokuren huffed, shoving her forged book into her waistband. "She really says what's on her mind, doesn't she?"

"Gizli isn't very tactful," Clara admitted. "But all of you _please_ keep your voices down. We have patients recovering in here."

"I'm glad to see you're looking better, Arin," Felicity told him softly as she hurried over. She then leaned in to whisper to Daunte, "Gizli gave Israfil and Silvano their books for free. Israfil because he was "polite and handsome"." She giggled softly. "And Silvano because she'd never seen an elf before. But she made Mokuren pay 1,000 bits."

"One-thousand bits?" Daunte echoed just as softly.

Felicity laughed again. "She originally asked for 500, but then she kept raising the price because Mokuren wouldn't stop talking."

"That's still better than the 5,000 bits she originally quoted _us_ ," Daunte muttered.

"But we should be all set," Surya said. "So the six of us can head out whenever you're ready, Daunte."

"Head out?" Arin echoed.

"We went to Baltas to rescue Surya's cousin, but now we have to head to Tenaga to rescue another one," Daunte told him.

"You went to Baltas without me, Brother?" Arin looked hurt.

Daunte ruffled the hair on his head. "Once you're fully recovered I'll take you on a trip there. I promise."

Arin pouted, but he nodded. "All right. Please be careful."

"Roen is staying behind this time," Felicity told Arin. "But he's going to check up on you whenever he has a free moment until we get back."

"And we'll be careful," Daunte promised his brother. "We'll be back before you know it."

* * *

Nightfall was approaching as they saddled their horses. Daunte briefly pondered if they should get a night's rest before leaving for Tenaga, but ultimately he said nothing. Silvano definitely didn't seem to notice the time of day, and was still in a hurry to get to Tenaga and see if the missing princess there was his wife.

 _I'm hoping that at least one of them is in Tenaga and we're not chasing a false lead. But since Lady Kaylani is due to have her baby soon, I do hope we find her first._

Having a full six-member party made up of seasoned fighters _did_ make traveling much easier. The further west they headed, the greener the landscape became and the tougher the monsters became as well. The wild boars were much larger here, nearly the size of an adult cow, and instead of fighting ant armies they were fighting _wasp_ armies. There were also the occasional holly leaves that made a nuisance, sometimes led by a holly elf. Probably the most troublesome for Daunte though were DoReMi elves, who _sang_ to them to cause damage. The first time one attacked him, Daunte was too busy gaping stupidly at the unbelievable sight of _music notes_ flying at him to properly defend himself. The notes stung, but didn't do much damage and they were able to dispatch them easily enough. But these type of elves were very quick, and usually managed to sing two to three times each before finally being taken down.

Surya and Mokuren kept utilizing their unite attack, and Israfil wielded a powerful nodachi that was indeed as long as his whole body. But he swung the sword effortlessly in battle, and sometimes utilized the power of a rune Surya called a Titan Rune to increase the power of his blow. But Daunte also noticed that the Rune had limited uses, and Israfil seemed to only be able to use it once per encounter with monsters.

Silvano kept a measurable distance during combat, but Daunte was amazed by how quickly the elf was able to fire his bow and arrow. Oftentimes when they found themselves surrounded by multiple monsters, Silvano called upon the power of the Hawk Rune on his left hand and attacked the enemies that surrounded them. There was blatant desperation in his method of attack; wanting to wrap up a battle as quickly as possible so they could keep moving. Daunte couldn't blame him.

They rode into the morning. Daunte had started developing a headache a couple hours before, and he wondered if he was feeling lethargic from constantly riding around. They saw Tenaga on the horizon and Surya suddenly announced they would stop.

"We'll need to be rested up if we expect to storm the city and rescue my cousin," he rationalized. Daunte was glad for it, though he saw that Silvano was antsy. But the elven prince ultimately said nothing in protest.

Once everyone was rested up (and Daunte's headache was gone), they rode for Tenaga again. It was late morning, and the group had their identification books ready. The city looked completely fortified from a distance, surrounding by dark gray walls that stood at least six meters tall. Ahead at the gates, there was already a large group of travelers there, waiting in line to have their books checked by the guards. Daunte was a little relieved to see the line ahead of them, as it meant they wouldn't be as fully scrutinized by the guards than if they'd been the only ones in line.

 _Just keep playing it cool. You've come this far already, so you have to make sure you can see this through!_

The guards at Tenaga were definitely more thorough than the guards at Baltas. One accepted Daunte's identification book. He read it, looked at Daunte's face, and then read it again. After a moment he closed it and handed it back to Daunte. "Welcome to Tenaga."

"Thank you, sir." Daunte passed the gate and waited for the others to hurry on through. The guard checking Silvano's book paused for a lengthy period of time, but luckily he didn't question Silvano further and handed the elf his forged book back. Once they were all through they tied their horses to a waiting post along the interior of the walls and headed into the city proper.

For a city that was so heavily fortified, the populous had a laid-back demeanor. The streets around them were packed with people and everyone was shouting and laughing. It'd been such a long time since Daunte was in such a large city that he felt a little claustrophobic.

But he could hear various conversations around them…and they all virtually had the same topic.

"Isn't the Sheikh wonderful? We're so lucky to be living under his command!"

"He's still so young and handsome, but he isn't yet married! What a waste!"

"I heard that the baker's daughter accidentally bumped into the Sheikh when he came by the other day! But the Sheikh actually apologized to _her_ and sent her on her way with some bits! What a kind man!"

"We're so lucky to be in Nagar's good graces! I have a good feeling that many wonderful things are coming our way!"

"Of course they are! The Cabinet speaks to Nagar directly, don't they? So their actions are guided by His will!"

"I'm going to assume this city has a mayor," Surya said softly after they wandered the town square. "And one of my cousins is most likely at the mayor's mansion, like in Baltas."

"I agree, Prince," Israfil said softly. A small group of women cat-called to him and he flushed and tugged at his collar awkwardly. Daunte noticed that most of the girls had thin veils, but at least one had a _solid_ veil. "This city however is very large, so the wisest course of action would be to use discretion and to figure out where the mansion is."

"C-Can we make a stop at the rune shop?" Felicity asked, pointing to the shop in question. "I-I know we're in a hurry, but I wanted to see if they had a Kite Rune I could buy."

"Oh, there's an armory beside it!" Mokuren perked up. "I have a Counter Rune equipped so I don't need to stop by the rune shop, but I could definitely use some better armor!"

"My armor is still in pretty good shape, so I don't think I need to buy a replacement at this time," Felicity said.

"Hopefully we all have enough money," Surya said, checking the bits they'd received from their battles. "I'm still get use to this currency."

"I'm okay with runes, but I do need new armor," Silvano admitted softly. He still looked like he was on edge. "My encounter with those crazed soldiers shredded my other armor."

Daunte wanted new armor as well, but he also debated sharpening his tekko and raising its level. But he didn't know how much more expensive that would be, so he ultimately decided on getting armor.

"Welcome!" the man behind the counter greeted them. He was younger than the armorer in K'alak'i Patieba, but he looked so jovial that Daunte couldn't help but smile back. The man looked to be in his thirties and was heavyset, but his brown hair has neatly kept and his blue eyes were friendly. He wore a dark blue shirt and white vest and waved them in. "Welcome to _Gusoku's Shop_! Everything here is made from the best materials!"

"What are your rates?" Surya asked as he closely examined a leather breastplate on display.

"The prices vary based on customer size, but I offer a seventy-percent discount to soldiers of the Holy Army!" Daunte's heart dropped into his stomach as he heard this. Gusoku continued. "If you all happen to be recruits, then just hand me your identification books for confirmation of your ranks, and I will apply the discount to your purchase!"

"Seventy percent?" Mokuren looked at him with shock. "That's certainly very generous of you, sir."

The smile faded from Gusoku's face and he lowered his head. "I wish I could say it was my own curtesy, but unfortunately I'm required by _law_ to such a discount to soldiers. But that's not so bad—we merchants are required to give a _ninety_ percent discount to Clerics!"

Daunte's eyebrows raised from this proclamation. _Ninety percent discount? At that rate, you might as well give Clerics your wares for free!_

"It's all part of the Merchant's Pledge." Gusoku patted a notice on the wall behind the counter. The page started at the ceiling and was long enough to touch the floor and go out of sight of the counter. "The Merchant's Pledge has 78 parts, and we're required _yearly_ to memorize and recite it in the capital before the Cabinet of High Clerics. If we're unable to, we lose our license." He laughed. "Luckily I read the Pledge every single day, so I know it by heart. But it gets difficult when they start adding new parts to the pledge. It's _really_ no problem," he added quickly, looking at them. "I'm lucky my shop is here in Tenaga, and I serve under a Sheikh like Keiran Umed. I could ask for no finer man to pay tribute to."

"That's…quite a doozy," Surya said softly. He gestured to the breastplate he'd been looking at. "How much for this?"

"Here, I'll help all of you get fitted into your armor and then I'll tell you the prices." Gusoku dropped his voice low. "If you promise not to say anything about what I just told you, I'll give you all a twenty percent discount."

It was a tempting offer, and Daunte looked at his companions for their thoughts. At the same time though, it didn't sit right to accept a discount because Gusoku was afraid for himself because his spoke his mind. Luckily, Daunte saw that Surya and the others weren't exactly jumping at Gusoku's offer so he turned back to the armorer. "Thank you for the offer, but we'll pay full price. We'll also keep quiet about what you said."

Gusoku looked touched by his statement. "You're a very generous young man. If only if more people your age—and _older_ even—were as generous as you…"

Daunte didn't understand why everybody reacted to his kindness and generosity as though his actions were somehow saintly. _Anyone who was in my shoes would react the same as I. Or is it that not_ _ **enough**_ _people act the same way I do? No wonder our country is in the shape it's in._

They got fitted into armor and their combined total was 15,000 bits. It felt very steep to Daunte, and he was concerned they wouldn't have enough to spend at the item shop. But he paid what was due, and Gusoku was kind enough to show them to the door. "Stop by anytime you like!"

"I got a Kite Rune!" Felicity cheered, showing off her right hand. "This is great! Now my throwing accuracy will get much better!"

"You were doing just fine on your own," Surya said. "But yeah, the Kite Rune _should_ help with your throwing."

"So we just have to get some supplies and then figure out where the mayor's house is and who's in it," Silvano said. The more time they spent getting ready for the upcoming onslaught, the more apprehensive he looked.

"Mokuren and I will hit up the item shop," Surya said, gesturing to the shop in the question. "The rest of you can try and find out where we're supposed to be going."

"Sounds good," Israfil said. He looked around as Surya and Mokuren hurried towards the store. "With the amount of gossip occurring around us, we're bound to pick up something."

"I wish I could pick somebody up and _shake_ the information we need out of them!" Silvano shook his head as they wandered around, discreetly listening in on various conversations. "I just feel like there's more that I could be doing…"

"We'll get in," Daunte told him. "No matter what, we'll get in and rescue whoever's there."

"Psst!"

Daunte stopped in his tracks at this sound. The others stopped in confusion. Daunte was surprised he'd been able to hear the sound with the commotion around them. "Did anybody else hear that?"

"Hear what?" Felicity asked.

"Psst!" it came again, the sound from the darkness of an alleyway nearby. "You there! The boy with the True Rune!"

The hairs stood up on the back of Daunte's neck. He looked at the others and saw from their expressions that they'd heard it too. Israfil had reached for the hilt of his sword, and he was gesturing to them. "We must go! Quickly!"

"Wait a moment!" the discreet but rather loud whisper came to them. It was impossible to tell if the keeper of the voice was a man or woman. "Come to me! I may have some information that will be useful to you!"

Daunte looked towards the alleyway warily. He saw a silhouette moving around in the darkness, but he couldn't see the person's face. There was a huge risk approaching a stranger who knew he had a True Rune. But…but he was curious to see what information this person had. And _how_ they'd known that Daunte had a True Rune.

"Let's see what they want," Daunte said softly.

"I don't believe that's a good idea," Israfil said.

"I agree with Israfil, it may be a trap," Silvano said.

"But I don't hear anyone else down that alleyway. It probably wouldn't hurt to hear what they have to say," Daunte said.

After a moment Israfil reluctantly nodded, though he kept his hand near his sword. "I will advise you to keep a distance, Sir Daunte, just in case it is a trap."

"I will." The four of them carefully approached the alleyway. Daunte didn't like that he still couldn't see the mysterious person in the shadows, even as they drew closer. He finally stopped at the mouth of the alleyway, three meters from the strangers. "Who are you?"

"I cannot tell you my name yet," the stranger replied softly. Even while closer to them, Daunte _still_ couldn't tell their gender. "But I speak truthfully when I tell you that I'm your ally."

"How did you know I had a True Rune?"

"Because the High Clerics released a bulletin in the capital that a boy matching your description had stolen "something valuable", which happened to be a True Rune. Although, it looks like the bulletin hasn't reached here yet." The stranger paused before continuing. "Either that, or the populous here is completely indifferent to the bulletins."

 _Great_. Daunte shook his head. "So, what do you want? Why did you call out to me?"

"You're hear looking for something, aren't you?" the stranger asked. "And judging from the three Falenans and a Toran elf in your party, I can imagine it has to do with the missing Falenan royals."

Daunte was immediately on edge. Surya and Mokuren were still at the item shop, so the only way this stranger had known there was three Falenans in the party was if they were _following_ his group. He also looked at Silvano, whose head was still wrapped up with the scarf to cover his ears. The elf had pulled out his bow and had his hand on an arrow. "You seem to know many interesting things for someone claiming to be an ally," he said hotly.

"I _am_ the best at what I do," the stranger responded blithely. "So I hope that, with everything I already know about you, that you can trust me to give you a hand."

Daunte didn't know if he _could_ trust this person. The fact that this stranger knew so much made him more self-conscious about being out in the open.

But…but the stranger _had_ readily admitted the information they'd known about the group. So maybe…maybe they could trust them?

"Yes," Daunte said finally. "We're here for looking for Falenan royals."

"Daunte!" Felicity hissed warningly.

"And we heard a rumor one of them was here in Tenaga. Is this true?"

"A black coffin arrived here in town several days ago and was taken straight to the mayor's mansion," the stranger responded back. "The coffin contained a beautiful young lady, between the ages of twenty and twenty-five, who was with child—"

"Kaylani!" Silvano hissed, startling Daunte. He surged forward. "Where is she?! She's still here, right?!"

"She is still here," the stranger confirmed. "Sheikh Keiran Umed arrived yesterday to take custody of her and to escort her back to his Garrison, but he left without taking her. Rumor has it that he saw her condition and refused to take her with him on morality grounds."

"Well, is she all right?! Has she given birth?!"

"According to the information I gathered, she is still pregnant."

Silvano surged forward into the darkness of the alleyway, but the stranger jumped back and raised their hands. "She is still at the mayor's mansion, which is to the northwest of this position. Keep following the street north of the rune shop and you will find the mayor's mansion in no time at all."

Silvano left the alleyway without another word and hurried off in the direction of the mansion. Daunte bowed to the stranger slightly. "Thank you for your information."

"You're welcome," the stranger said. "If you should need anything else…I will be around."

The alleyway suddenly felt empty, and Daunte quickly looked up. The stranger's silhouette was gone. They'd left without making a sound.

* * *

They quickly collected Surya and Mokuren at the item ship and hurried after Silvano. The elven prince was quick on his feet, and it took quite some time for them to catch up to him. In the meantime they quickly filled Surya and Mokuren in on the information they'd received.

"So it's Kaylani that's here," Surya said. He nodded. "I'm so relieved we've found her so quickly! But can we trust the information that was given to us?"

"Do we have any other choice?" Felicity asked.

"…No, we don't."

They finally caught up to Silvano alongside high walls almost as high as the walls surrounding Tenaga. Daunte had a feeling these walls guarded the mayor's mansion. He looked up the length of them with the others. "I have a feeling if we tried to storm the place that we would have more trouble than if we snuck in," Surya said. He looked up and saw a tall tree with branches hanging over the side of the wall. "Silvano, can you fire an arrow up at the tree? If we find some rope we can hopefully climb up over the wall before we're spotted."

"Here's some." Israfil quickly ducked into an alleyway across the street and came back with a bundle of some coarse rope. "Will this do?"

"Of course," Silvano said. He took one end and tied it around an arrow. Then he quickly fired the arrow at the tree. The arrowhead impacted into the trunk above the branches. "Okay, let's go!"

They moved quickly. Daunte was the first to go, and his anxiety surfaced again as he climbed the rope. His grip around the rope was terrible and he kept sliding down it, burning his fingers and palms. It was embarrassing and frustrating. _I'm not exactly showing how useful I am when I can't even climb, can I?_

He finally reached the tree branch however and slid down the trunk to the ground. Silvano was next, and Surya quickly followed. "Do you need a potion for your hands?" the prince whispered to him.

"I-I'm fine," Daunte answered back, trying not to notice the rope burns.

By the time Israfil, the last person, made it over the side, they got the notice of guards. "INTRU—" one started shouting, but Daunte punched him in the face with his tekko and he went down before the alert sounded.

The mansion was even more heavily guarded than the one in Baltas had been. There were guards stationed every three meters, and since it was still daylight out there wasn't much cover to sneak around. They walked nearly the entire perimeter of the mansion before Mokuren hissed, "There!"

It was a window into the cellar. It was small, but it looked big enough for them to squeeze into. Most of all it was _open_.

"Okay," Surya said softly. There was only one guard within sight, and another guard was approaching. It looked like they were doing a shift-switch. "Now!" while the guards were distracted, they darted across the lawn towards the open window. As they ran though, a part of the conversation between the guards floating over to them.

"—should we do?"

"We can't just keep her! Even if she _is_ an infidel, she's still preg—"

The window was thankfully wide enough for most for them to slide through into the basement. Only Silvano and Israfil had a bit of trouble squeezing through, but with some help from the others they managed to get inside before they were spotted. The basement of the mansion was filled with crate, and some displaced furniture.

"Okay, we're in," Surya said. He drew his tri-nunchaku. "But if there's as many guards in here as there is out there, we're probably going to have a few battles on our hands."

"I'm ready," Silvano said, also arming himself.

In addition to the crates, there were three treasure chests down there. Daunte wondered if they should take them before he shrugged. _We're already stealing a kidnapped princess, so what does it matter if we take more?_

In one treasure chest there was an old book with a green cover. It looked so old that Daunte couldn't read the title. After a moment he shrugged and stashed it into a bag. The second treasure chest was a rolled-up scroll that was sealed shut with a seal in the shape of wings. Daunte was about to break the seal and open it when Surya stopped him. "That's an _escape scroll_ ," he told Daunte. "And we don't want to use that yet."

"Those generally only work in non-residential settings," Silvano added. "So it probably won't do us any good even when we find Kaylani."

Daunte stashed the escape scroll with the book and opened the last chest. To his shock there was a bag of money inside—10,000 bits, to be precise!

"I think we're good to go," Surya said. They made their way towards the stairs. "Let's go rescue my cousin."

Sure enough, they opened the door leading out of the basement and to the first floor to find themselves face-to-face with six guards. "—long are we supposed to keep her?!" one guard was complaining.

" _Intruders_!" another shouted.

They surged forward to engage the guards. Felicity made good use of her new Kite Rune and her knives found their mark. Within just a few short minutes the guards were writhing on the ground in pain.

"Well, so much for sneaking in," Surya said.

"We made quite an entrance, though," Mokuren said amusedly.

"Kaylani?" Silvano shouted, looking around.

"There they are!" three more guards rushed towards them, but like their comrades they were quickly dispatched. One however was left standing, and Surya had him by his collar. "You have someone we want," he told the guard savagely. "Where is Kaylani?"

The guard's eyes went wide, but he furiously shook his head. "I-I don't know what—"

Silvano slammed his foot into the guard's sternum, knocking him out of Surya's hold, and pinning him to the wall. Then while the guard gagged for breath, Silvano quickly drew his bow and arrow and pointed the arrowhead at the man's face. "You have five seconds to answer our question. Where is my wife?"

The guard sputtered and trembled with fear, his eyes crossing as he stared at the arrowhead. "I…I—"

" _Where is my wife_?!" Silvano bellowed out. It was the first time he'd raised his voice and it startled Daunte. "This is your last warning!"

"Upstairs!" the guard finally cried out. "T-The princess is in a guest room upstairs! T-The fourth room to the right of the stairwell!"

Silvano lowered his foot and relaxed his bow. But then he swung the longbow and cracked the man across the face with it, sending him sprawling unconscious to the floor. "Let's go."

"We're probably going to face more guards upstairs," Surya warned as they ran towards the stairwell.

"I have plenty of arrows," Silvano answered back.

Indeed they ran into six more guards the minute they climbed the final step, but the desperation in the group gave them an aggressive advantage. Silvano led the group, which left him at an extreme disadvantage as a long-range weapon user, but the elf made quick of the guards with his bare hands as they followed the directions they were given to get to Kaylani's room.

They reached the fourth door but the knob didn't turn in Daunte's hand, indicating that it was locked. Silvano gave the door two swift kicks and it burst open. "Kaylani?!"

"Silvano!" came the immediate reply

The elven prince rushed into the room. The group immediately followed, and saw Silvano embracing a beautiful young woman near the bed. He pulled back and gave her a full kiss on the mouth. Daunte was surprised at seeing such open affection and looked away slightly.

"Are you all right? Did they hurt either of you?" Silvano looked her over carefully. He pressed a hand over her pregnant belly.

Kaylani shook her head. "N-No, we're fine. But I…" she hissed slightly in pain and ducked her head.

"Here, sit down for a moment." He directed her to sit on the bed. Daunte saw her condition and immediately felt alarm. Kaylani was still pregnant but her complexion was pale. She also looked like she was sweating profusely.

 _Is she going into labor?_

"Kaylani, we found you!" Surya rushed over to the bed. He pressed a hand to his chest and heaved out a sigh of relief. "I'm glad we got to you when we did!"

"My Lady, are you well?" Mokuren asked worriedly. She wrung her hands slightly.

"S-Surya? Mokuren? You guys came f…" Kaylani broke off again with another quiet gasp of pain. "H…Were all of us taken?"

"Yes. But we've found Freyr so we just need to find Farrin, Signe, and Archana."

Kaylani's eyes went wide. "M-M-My sister. She—" she suddenly pitched forward, almost falling out of bed, but Silvano caught her and held her steady. "We're going to get you out of here. We'll take you somewhere safe before we go home."

"You're here for the princess?"

Daunte quickly turned around, and Silvano stood up and stepped in front of Kaylani. Everyone was reaching for their weapons as Tenaga's mayor calmly entered the room, followed by six guards.

Silvano pointed with his arrow. "If you don't get out of our way, then I'll force you to move!"

"Please, take her," the mayor answered softly.

"Wait, _what_?" Surya burst out. "You keep her captive and then you _ask_ us to take her away?"

"I wasn't supposed to be the one who kept custody of her," the mayor replied. "But Sheikh Umed refused to take her back to his Garrison on account of her condition. He claimed that my city would be better equipped to handle her giving birth."

"…But?" Felicity added.

"But the High Clerics are aware she is pregnant and I've been instructed to send her baby to Mlkwt Alsmwat as soon as it's born."

Kaylani cried out in alarm, but then gave a huge wince. Silvano pulled back on his bow, ready to release. "You have five seconds to tell me why I shouldn't fire this arrow at your head."

The guards drew their swords, but the mayor gestured with his hand. "My own wife is pregnant. I know the lot of you are infidels and heretics and are naturally beneath a Nagarean believer like me, but I cannot in good conscience separate Princess Kaylani from her baby. We are aware she is close to due, so we will not stop you from taking her."

Silvano relaxed his arm very slowly, but Israfil stepped forward. "If you're letting us go, then why did you bring your guards with you?"

"Because I need all of you to fight."

"Eh?!" Mokuren exclaimed.

"I'm going to send word to Mlkwt Alsmwat tomorrow that the Princess was taken from us by heretics," the mayor said. "However, I will not be able to convince the High Clerics that she was plausibly taken from my mansion unless there is evidence that we put up a struggle. I'm aware that you defeated nearly all of the guards in Baltas—and have injured over ten of my guards already—so I need you to keep engaging my guards with that same enthusiasm."

"Y-You're asking us to beat up your _own guards_?!" Surya said incredulously.

"We're aware of what the consequences could be if we can't convince the High Clerics that you invaded my mansion, beat my guards, and spirited the Princess away. I've spoken with my men and they've agreed not to aggressively engage you. All I ask is that you do as you did in Baltas and not kill any of my guards."

Daunte looked over his shoulder at Kaylani. She was slumped over slightly and her breathing was labored. They needed to get her out of there as soon as possible. He looked at Surya and nodded, and the prince nodded in kind. "If you insist, sir, then we'll fight your guards."

"We were going to do it anyway," Mokuren added cheerfully.

"There is a wagon at the northwest back side of my home," the mayor continued. "It will probably be safer to transport the princess in that than on horseback. It's yours for the taking. You can get out of Tenaga through a secure exit not far from here. The guards there are aware that you're leaving, but I will have to ask you to fight them as well before you depart."

"…Thanks," Daunte said.

Silvano approached the mayor, his expression hard. "Are _you_ included amongst those you wish us to assault?"

"Yes," the mayor immediately replied.

Silvano swung his fist and punched the man in his solar plexus with what looked like all his strength. The guards reflexively twitched as the mayor collapsed to the floor, dry-heaving and groaning in pain, but ultimately they stood their ground and did not attack.

" _That_ is for the worry you've caused me," Silvano told him darkly.

The mayor was gagging in pain and seemed incapable of verbally responding, but he waved his hand as though in acknowledgment of Silvano's words.

The guards had their weapons drawn, but they did not swing their swords as the group engaged them in a one-sided fight. Daunte felt a little sick to his stomach to throw punches at individuals who were doing nothing to defend themselves, and he tried his best to avoid doing too much damage to their bodies. Since Surya was armed with his tri-nunchaku it was easier for him to land non-fatal blows. Mokuren ended up striking the soldiers with the non-bladed side of her naginata, and Israfil struck at them with the flat side of his nodachi. Keeping to the back were Silvano and Felicity, and both were supporting Kaylani and helping her to walk.

From the second floor down to the first floor they were engaged by guards who did not fight back. They were left writhing on the ground groaning in pain, and Daunte felt a little sorry for them. _Hopefully their injuries DO convince the Clerics that they tried to stop us from leaving._

They followed the mayor's directions and found a wagon with two horses already tied to it, ready to go. Daunte was very surprised to see this. _Wow. He really meant it when he said he wanted us to get her out of here._

Israfil and Silvano lifted Kaylani into the wagon. Her breathing was becoming more and more labored, and she looked faint. Daunte was truly concerned she was going into labor, and he hoped—he _really_ hoped—that she didn't end up giving birth before they made it back to headquarters.

"We still have our horses tied up at the front of town," Surya said. "I think we should split up into two groups. Three of us will steer this wagon out of here and engage the guards. The other three will rush back to the main entrance and get our horses. Does that sound good?"

"Sounds like a plan," Felicity said. She looked at Daunte. "Who's going to stay with the wagon, and who's going to go to the front gate?"

"I won't leave Kaylani's side," Silvano answered automatically. "I must stay with the wagon."

"Wherever Prince Surya goes, I must go too," Mokuren said.

"I'm all right with whichever group I'm in," Israfil said.

"I would like to stay by my cousin's side, but I'll do whatever I can to get us out of here in one piece," Surya said.

"We'll need to decide quickly," Felicity said. "What do you think, Daunte?"

Daunte quickly gave it thought before he decided. "Surya, Mokuren. Please stay with Silvano and Lady Kaylani and get the wagon out of here. Felicity, General Israfil and I will get out through the front gate."

"Got it." Surya jumped up into the front seat and grabbed the reins. Mokuren climbed up to sit beside him. Silvano was directing Kaylani to lie down in the wagon. "Be careful, all of you."

"Let's meet northwest of here after we escape the city," Israfil said. "Then we'll work our way back to the Liberation Army headquarters."

"Sounds good. We'll see you guys later!" Surya snapped the reins and the horses took off. The wagon looked very jittery, but otherwise steady as they left the grounds of the mansion and disappeared out of sight.

"Right, let's get out of here before the guards at the main gate figure out what happened," Felicity said. She stretched her arms over her head. "I don't think the mayor told _them_ about our plans."

"With any luck they won't notice we're short three people, and taking three extra horses," Israfil added.

* * *

It was still busy within the town, but Daunte didn't want to draw attention to themselves by sprinting down the streets and past shops and houses. Their group hurried to the front gates, though Daunte felt his heart pounding in his throat. _Please let us get out of here without problems!_

They found their horses and untied them. They each grabbed the reins of Surya, Mokuren, and Silvano's horses and steered them towards the gate. Daunte kept his breathing calm and tried to look as unassuming as possible. The last thing he needed was for them to be stopped! Luckily though, the guards still had their hands full processing people _into_ Tenaga that they didn't give much thought to those who were leaving. They calmly led the horses on a trot until they were far enough away from the gates that they wouldn't be noticed, and then they took off in a gallop.

They rode hard for ten minutes, giving significant distance between themselves and the city. They rode to the area they promised to meet Surya and slowed their horses down. Then they waited. Daunte looked in the direction of Tenaga anxiously. _Please hurry!_

Fifteen minutes later, the horse-drawn wagon lumbered towards them. Surya had a look of irritation on his face as he reached them. " _Apparently_ he told his guards we were coming," he said curtly, bringing the wagon to a stop. "But not all of the guards got the memo! We wasted ten minutes because they were too busy arguing about whether or not they were supposed to arrest us!"

"But you guys made it," Daunte said. He steered his horse towards the wagon. "Are you all right, Lady Kaylani?"

She looked no better than she did at the mansion. She was pale and sweating profusely. She was resting her head against Silvano's chest, but she opened her eyes to look at him. "Y…Are you Daunte?"

"Y-Yes," Daunte said, surprised she knew him by name.

Kaylani smiled at him. "Surya told me about you on the way here. It's nice to meet you. Thank you for being so helpful finding my family."

Daunte looked at Surya, but the prince was talking quietly with Mokuren. _He talked to her about me? Me? But why?_ "I-It's not just me. Roen and Felicity have been helping a lot, too."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, your Highness," Felicity said, bringing her horse over. "I'm Felicity. We're going to help you guys any way we can in order to find your family."

"Than—" Kaylani sucked in a sharp breath. Silvano looked up at the others. "Can we stop here for a short while? This wagon isn't very stable, and the rough motions have caused her discomfort."

"I think we _all_ need to rest," Surya said, hopping out of the front seat. "We'll rest for a couple hours and then keep riding until we reach the headquarters. It should be northeast of here, so…" he pulled out his compass and turned his body around until he found the direction he needed. "So we ride _that_ way."

"I kept track of our surroundings, Prince," Israfil offered. He unlaced one of his boots and shook it out. "I'll keep us on the right path."

"Good."

It was still the middle of the day, but Daunte was exhausted from the running, riding, and fighting. The minute he rested his head against his bag, he was asleep.

"Kaylani?"

Silvano's voice broke through his slumber and Daunte blinked. He didn't sleep long. He knew that from the position of the sun in the sky. It was still directly overhead.

"…I think my water broke."

 _That_ had Daunte flying to his feet. Silvano was inside the wagon leaning over Kaylani, who was out of sight, and Surya was looking in the wagon. Everyone else was slowly coming around when Surya shouted, "We need to _go_!"

Less than five minutes later they were riding quickly in the direction of the headquarters. Daunte kept looking over his shoulder at the wagon, but he still couldn't see the princess. But he saw Silvano, and the elven prince was pale. Surya looked grim, and Mokuren looked very worried.

 _Please! Please let us get there before the baby comes!_

Kaylani cried out in pain. She was clearly in labor now, and the rattling wagon was probably not helping matters. They rode all day and into the night. The sun had slid beyond the horizon and a full moon rose in the sky when they finally spotted the familiar grove of trees.

"Damn!"

But they forgot how uneven the path was. They only traveled a _quarter_ of the way to the castle when one of the wagon wheels got hitched on an overgrown root and caused it to snap clean in half, causing the wagon to fall and nearly capsize.

Daunte jumped off his horse and checked on Silvano and Kaylani to see if they were all right. Thankfully they didn't look injured, but Kaylani was still visibly on pain. "Give me a horse, _please_!" Silvano grunted.

Israfil brought over a horse and Silvano climbed on top of it. Israfil and Surya lifted Kaylani into his arms, and Surya grabbed the horse's bridle to guide it on the uneven path. Given the seriousness of the situation, Daunte realized they didn't have the time to bring all their horses down the path as well. He signaled to Felicity and Mokuren and they began tying the reins to logs and even to the wagons. They would have to come back for the horses later.

"W-We'll go on ahead and tell them we're coming!" Daunte told Surya. The prince nodded and Daunte took off running down the path towards headquarters. He heard Felicity and Israfil running behind him and he tried not to think of the worst. No, the baby was going to be born healthy—they both were going to be all right!

They reached the front of headquarters, and an Army guard approached them. "Hey! It's Daun—"

"Get Clara!" Daunte shouted, barely pausing for breath. "She's in labor!"

The guard's eyes filled with shock and his mouth hung open. "C-C-C-Clara is in labor?!"

"No, the princess! Princess Kaylani! She went into labor, _get Clara_!"

"R-Right!" the guard took off running. Even though it was nighttime, there were still people about and the commotion Daunte had caused drew attention. Daunte collapsed in a heap on the ground, panting for breath.

"I-Is Clara coming?!" Felicity panted, falling down beside him in the grass.

"Y…Yes," Daunte said. He looked down the path but saw no signs of any of the others. "W-Wasn't the General running behind us?"

"He d-doubled back for them," Felicity said. She wiped at her brow.

"I'm here!" Clara rushed down the steps, pushing past the people gathered around. Behind her were two soldiers carrying a foldable gurney. "Where is she?"

"S-She's coming," Daunte said, standing up. As he said this, the others finally came into view. Silvano was holding Kaylani steady on the horse, but even then the princess looked like she would fall off it. Clara ran over to them. "How far apart are her contractions?"

"About a minute or so," Silvano said, easing her off the horse. Kaylani was directed onto the waiting gurney. "I-It started six hours ago."

"Six _hours_?!" Clara shook her head. "Then she's close. Bring her in, quickly!"

There was loud conversation all around them as Kaylani was carried up the stairs and into the castle. Most everyone was excited or even amazed to see a potential birth, while others were panicking. Daunte didn't pay any attention as he followed the others inside.

"—very inconvenient."

Daunte paused in the main hall when he heard these words. The others didn't seem to because they were hurrying after Clara down the stairs towards the infirmary. But Daunte held himself still…and listened.

"This is my Army's headquarters. This is not a civilian hospital." The voice was coming from upstairs and out of sight. "It was a mistake to allow them to bring her back here."

Daunte's stomach lurched. _Bearyl Lutis?_

"My Lord, you gave them your word," came the reply. It was Caesar. "You told them you opened this castle to the royal family as a safe haven. And it wasn't exactly a secret that Princess Kaylani was pregnant. I mean, that was basically the first thing Silvano said about himself when he arrived! You must fulfill your word and allow her to have her baby here!"

"…Yes. I know what I promised and I will keep my promise. But I can't be responsible for the safety of a newborn babe, not when I have the lives of the men and women who serve under me to worry about."

Daunte didn't want to hear any more. He ran down the stairs to the infirmary, but he was grinding his teeth. _So…Lord Bearyl feels inconvenienced by the princess and the baby. Then why invite them back here in the first place?_

As upset as he was by Bearyl's words, Daunte knew that he needed to keep them to himself. If Surya or Silvano knew what he had said, well…losing an alliance with Falena would be the _least_ of Bearyl's worries.

At the door to the infirmary, Daunte met up with Freyr. "Is it Kaylani? I-Is she having her baby?"

"It looks like it," Daunte said. Freyr hurried inside and Daunte followed. Arin had woken up from the commotion, and Daunte waved to him before hurrying over to the isolated section of the infirmary where Kaylani had been taken. Gunther was seated on an empty bed, looking grim, and Daunte saw Allise joining the group. Freyr was standing just outside of the area, looking too nervous to peek. The princess let out a scream of pain that startled Daunte, but he moved forward. "W-Will she be all right?"

"She's dilated to nearly ten centimeters," Clara said. She was signaling to orderlies dressed in white. "There's too many people over here. I'll need all of you to leave."

"I won't leave her side," Silvano said darkly.

Clara huffed. "Fine. I'll need some of you to assist me but the rest of you have to leave. Allise, will you assist me?"

"Of course," Allise said. She hurried over to a washing basin to wash her hands.

"And…" Clara looked around before her eyes settled on Felicity. "You."

" _M-Me_?!" Felicity cried out.

"I need you to help me."

"B-But I've never delivered a baby before!"

"Now's as good of a time to learn as any. Go wash your hands with Allise."

Felicity looked at Daunte helplessly, but Daunte honestly didn't know what to tell her. Felicity's shoulders drooped in defeat and she trudged over to where Allise was.

"But the rest of you, out of here," Clara said sharply.

Kaylani bucked slightly, her eyes half-lidded. Daunte was standing directly beside her bed and the sudden motion startled him. "W…Wait. Wait!"

"Kaylani, please don't worry," Surya said, though his expression was strained. "Everything will be all ri—"

"N-No! You don't understand!" Kaylani reached out and grabbed Daunte by the arm. She squeezed it hard. "Please…you have to hurry! You have to hurry!"

"My Lady, please don't be distressed," Clara reassured her. "I've delivered babies before. Your child will be fine."

"Y-You don't…" Kaylani furiously shook her head. "M-My sister! You have to save my sister!"

" _Lady Archana_?" Daunte was startled by Israfil's sudden shout. The General quickly stepped forward. "My Lady, did something happen to her?"

Kaylani shook her head again. "Y…Yesterday. I overheard the m-mayor talking about her. A-A-Archana…she was taken someplace."

"Where, Kaylani?" Surya implored her. "Where did they take Archana?"

"Can this wait?" Clara demanded. "What's most important right now is the wellbeing of the mother and child!"

"She…I h-heard." Kaylani was struggling to get the words out between her labor contractions. Silvano was holding her hand and speaking into her ear softly. "They originally sent her to a city I c-can't pronounce. It starts with a 'U'."

" _Uaminifu_ ," Allise said softly. She looked like she was in deep thought.

Kaylani nodded. "But yesterday…yesterday I heard. I heard they m-moved her somewhere else. Someone went and t-took her. They moved her out of…that city."

"My Lady." Israfil knelt at her bedside. His expression was full of worry. "Were you able to find out where Lady Archana was taken?"

Kaylani was starting to look delirious from the pain, but she nodded and forced an answer out. "T…They called it the ' _Great Cistern_ '."


	10. Chapter One: Part Ten

The Chiyu Star poll closes next week. If the tie for first place remains, I'm probably going to just flip a coin to determine the Star. Make sure to vote in it before the poll closes next Saturday. As always, you can also leave your votes in a review on this story if you can't participate in the poll. Here's the link: topic/180690/135923192/1/Who-would-you-like-to-be-the-Chiyu-detective-Star-in-my-Suikoden-VI-fanfic

* * *

Part Ten

"'The Great Cistern'?" Surya echoed. He looked at Daunte. "What is that?"

"All of you _out_!" Clara snapped. "If you're not assisting in the delivery, then you're just in the way!"

The group begrudgingly left the isolated area of the infirmary, and Clara swiftly closed it off by pulling a curtain closed. Daunte spared a glance at Felicity and the poor girl had a look of dread on her face.

 _Well, she survived the Dark Chasm. Hopefully witnessing childbirth won't be too bad for her._

Gunther swung his legs over the side of the bed and stood. "The princess told you guys something, right?"

"Archana," Surya said, shaking his head. "She was taken to a place called the Great Cistern."

Gunther winced and rubbed at his nape. "That's not good."

"What is the Great Cistern?" Israfil asked. "By the name alone, it should be a reservoir of fresh water, correct?"

"Well, yeah." Gunther shook his head. "Golden River is technically the only source of fresh water in Nagarea. Well, except for rumors of a fresh water spring in the Red Tundra, but that hasn't ever been confirmed. But in any case, the Great Cistern _is_ a reservoir that a portion of Golden River flows into underground. It stores _all_ of the fresh water in Nagarea."

"If the Great Cistern is a freshwater reservoir, then why do you look so anxious?" Mokuren asked softly.

"Because monsters have invaded the Great Cistern," Daunte said softly. He got looks of horror in response and he shrugged. "From what I've heard it didn't use to be so bad. I mean they already had a problem with monsters, but the workers of the Cistern were able to tolerate it. Then a couple years ago I guess they lost control of the number of monsters coming into the Cistern and were forced to abandon it."

"There are still people working at the Cistern," Gunther said. "But they're outnumbered by the number of monsters in there. As such, unfortunately, some of the vaults of water down there have been contaminated."

Surya turned green and shuddered. "No offense, but now I'm going to think twice about drinking water here."

"They've isolated the vaults that have been contaminated," Gunther said. "But…the Theocracy hasn't done much otherwise to try and contain the problem. It's rumored that they're keeping those vaults contaminated on purpose just in case they want to unleash them on a group of people. Like us."

"And you guys _don't_ get contaminated water?" Mokuren asked, rubbing at her arms slightly.

Gunther shook his head. "We've made sure of it."

"If Lady Archana is in such a place, then we need to get to her as quickly as possible," Israfil said insistently.

"I agree," Surya said. "We should go—"

"Just hang on a second," Gunther interrupted. "She was taken there for a reason, right? A valuable hostage like her taken to a monster-infested area? This is obviously a trap, guys!"

"It might be, but I'm still going," Israfil told him.

"Look, it's the middle of the night and you guys have been running all over the Northeast without stopping. Since you're going to be walking into a trap, you should take a breather and head out in the morning."

"If we wait, then they might move her somewhere else!" Surya snapped. "And what if she gets attacked?! Archana has no combat experience!"

"They're expecting you to come for her, so they won't let anything happen to her. Besides they've already taken the trouble of removing her from Uaminifu to the Great Cistern, so they're not going to remove her from that place so quickly. I know this is difficult to think about, but you must think rationally and get some rest! If you keep rushing from one to another without pause, you're all going to collapse. Just sleep it off until the morning and we'll head out after sunrise."

"'We'll'?" Surya echoed. "Weren't you suspended, Gunther?"

"Perhaps," Gunther said. He grinned. "But I can talk myself out of anything."

Daunte looked at the Falenans and then looked at Gunther. He knew time was of the essence, but he also knew that even they had their limits. Behind them Kaylani let out another scream of pain and they all flinch. Daunte waved to them to go into the hall, and he was surprised to find all of them following his direction. Arin was about to climb out of bed too, but Daunte signaled to him to stay in bed.

"Guys," he said when he was in the hall. "I know that time isn't on our side but Gunther has a point. If we're walking into a trap, then we need to be prepared for it. That means resting up so our Runes are recharged, and so our _bodies_ are recharged."

"Daunte—" Surya began.

"I know what's at stake, and I know it's important that we keep moving. But Gunther is right, we can't keep running around like this. We'll need to give one hundred percent in order to rescue Lady Archana _and_ the rest of your cousins. We just need a few short hours of sleep in actual beds in an actual safe place."

Surya was silent for a long moment. He looked at Mokuren and then looked at Israfil. Finally, he nodded. "All right. Let's bed down for the night and move out early tomorrow morning."

"To be honest, I haven't gotten a full night's rest since we crossed the border," Mokuren admitted. She yawned loudly stretched her arms over her head. "I could use a little sleep."

"I must admit the last several days have been very restless for me," Israfil agreed. "In between the running and fighting Lord Silvano and I did before coming here, neither of us has rested much."

"I'm plenty rested," Freyr said. "Can I come with you guys to the Great Cistern?"

Surya shook his head. "Please just listen to us and stay here, Freyr. We'll bring Archana back in no time."

The younger prince looked irritated, but he ultimately didn't argue any further.

"The sleeping area is three floors down from us," Gunther said. "There's individual rooms to sleep in, but we also have a barracks with more available beds. We don't have assigned beds there because we're all always running around doing something, so just grab an empty one and get some sleep. In the meantime I'm going to go see my Commander and see about getting my suspension lifted."

"Good luck," Surya said dryly. The group steered towards the stairs to the lower levels, but Gunther touched Daunte on the arm and stopped him briefly. "Good job, kid. You were able to sway them where I failed. Maybe we ought to use you for our diplomatic missions?" he snorted. "Hell, I might have to take you upstairs with me to speak to Lord Bearyl on my behalf!"

Daunte shook his head. "I didn't do anything special. Surya just listened to me because I'm his friend. And Mokuren and the General listened to me because their prince agreed with me. That's all, really."

"I don't think so." But Gunther let his arm go. "You have a natural power of persuasion, and though you don't talk much I can bet you have natural charisma. Someone like you can go far in our Army, Daunte."

Daunte shrugged. "I don't know, really. I'm just trying to survive, and look after my brother. I'm not trying to stand out."

"All right. But I'm not joking when I say you have potential." Gunther put his hands behind his head and steered towards the stairs leading upstairs. "Well, time to work my own political magic. With any luck I'll be joining you guys tomorrow."

Daunte watched him leave, and looked down at his right hand. _I still don't get it. Why is everyone treating my words and actions as though they're something extraordinary? All I'm doing is being practical and looking out for a friend. And my being here is because I wanted to bring Arin to a safe place. Is this True Rune causing me to emit some sort of influence on people?_

" _I don't know if you realize this, but you've inspired a lot of children around here."_

Yet Dr. Yulin told him that _before_ the True Rune chose him. Was there then some truth to what Gunther was saying?

He shook his head and turned towards the stairs. _My ego is starting to get the better of me. I have other things I need to worry about._

* * *

Daunte reached the barracks, which in it of itself was a giant room filled with over a hundred beds. There was very little privacy, but he was so tired that he didn't care. He saw that Surya and Mokuren had already fallen asleep in their own beds, and though Israfil was still awake he was quickly drifting off. Daunte himself didn't realize how tired he was until he sat down on an empty bed and pulled off his boots.

And the next he knew, a hand was touching his shoulder. He opened his eyes and realized he was sprawled at an awkward angle in the bed, and he blinked and looked up at the person leaning over him.

"Daunte." It was Roen. Daunte was awake in an instant and sat up, though his friend remained kneeling. "When did you get back?"

"Last night," Daunte said sheepishly. He rubbed at his eyes and looked towards the window. The sky was turning dark pink. "Did you just get back yourself, Roen?"

"Yes," Roen said, yawning. He sat down beside Daunte on the bed. "I met with Jantu and he gave me my assignment. We were supposed to go Uaminifu and raid a shipment of arms that were supposed to go to the city. The mission was originally supposed to last for ten days, but we found the sellers so quickly on the road that it went by pretty quickly."

"Arms?" Daunte asked.

"Swords, spears, you know." Roen shrugged. "Isn't it strange though that Uaminifu ordered so many weapons? Do you think the city is preparing for something?"

"I don't know." Daunte slowly stood up. "We found another royal yesterday, and luckily it was Lady Kaylani, Surya's pregnant cousin. We managed to get her back here before she gave birth."

"Oh, so _that's_ what all the screaming was about at the infirmary?" Roen asked. "Clara has barred anyone from coming and going in the infirmary. I guess too many people were going in to gawk."

So that meant Daunte wouldn't be able to see Arin before he headed out. He scoffed and shook his head. He looked over to where the Falenans were and saw that Israfil was already awake and polishing his nodachi. Surya was doing stretches, but Mokuren was still fast asleep. "We're going to be leaving in a little bit, Roen. We received word that another one of Surya's cousins was taken to the Great Cistern."

Roen blanched. "Why would they take a princess to a place like that?!"

"As a trap, no doubt."

"Probably." Roen shook his head and stood. "Lord Bearyl cleared me for the time being after we finished our mission, so I'll go with you."

"But didn't you just get back?" Daunte exclaimed. "You're probably exhausted!"

Roen snorted. "I completed a mission that was estimated to last ten days in less than _two_ days. I'm perfectly fine going with you guys. Besides, I like putting my Fire Rune to good use."

"Spoken like a true pyromancer," Daunte said. Roen laughed a little more loudly this time. "So we—"

There was a sudden 'thud' at the door of the barracks. Daunte and looked up and saw Felicity leaning against the doorway. The teenage girl was panting heavily and she looked exhausted. Daunte was shocked to see how tired she was. She never looked this bad before, not even when they'd been in the Dark Chasm!

"F-Felicity," Roen said, standing up as well. Before he could speak, Surya stepped forward. "Is it over? Are Kaylani and her baby okay?"

Felicity said nothing. She took two steps towards a bed and promptly fell face-first upon it. They rushed to her side in alarm, only to find that she was already fast asleep.

"If she's here, then that means the baby was born," Surya said. "Either that, or maybe Dr. Clara kicked her out of the infirmary?"

"I'm sure if she had bad news, she would've told us," Roen said. "So, when are we heading out?"

"In just a moment." Surya reached down and got his tri-nunchaku from beside the bed he'd slept on.

"Isn't Mokuren coming with us?" Daunte asked, gesturing to the still sleeping girl.

"Of course she is," Surya said. "But she was just so tired from yesterday that I decided to let her sleep in a little. Or at least I could gather as much, considering that she's usually awake before I am, and wasn't this morning."

Mokuren had been so chipper and _talkative_ that Daunte hadn't noticed that she'd been very tired. "Felicity is obviously in no shape to come with us, but Roen said he'd like to come."

"Sounds good," Israfil said. He strapped his sword to his back and stood. "Then are we ready?"

"Mokuren." Surya leaned over his bodyguard and gave her a light shake. "Hey, wake u—"

"I'm coming!" Mokuren shrieked, startling all of them. In an instant she was awake and standing on the bed, swinging her naginata. She stilled though when she saw Surya. "A-Ah, Prince. What are you doing up so early?"

"We're leaving early, remember? You just slept in a little."

"I-I _slept in_?!" Mokuren let out a dramatic wail and held her hand to her forehead. "Oh, what a terrible folly! I am a disgrace to my position! May the power of the Sun Rune strike me down!" she then dramatically fainted, right into a bemused Surya's arms.

"Is she always like this?" Roen asked, not really caring if Mokuren heard him.

"Well, the theatrics tend to make people underestimate her," Surya said dryly. "You'd be surprised how many people fall for this 'fainting routine'." He set the girl upright. "Are you done?"

"Yes," Mokuren said, suddenly chipper again. "Let's go and rescue Lady Archana."

"We should probably go and see if that…fellow was reinstated by the Commander," Israfil said. "We will most likely need him in order to get to the Great Cistern."

The group turned to leave the barracks. Daunte turned to go, but paused. After a moment he turned back to Felicity and rolled her onto her side. _There. Now she won't be smothered by her own pillow._

* * *

The infirmary was indeed still closed off, angry note on the door and everything. "' _No entry unless you're bleeding to death_ '," Daunte read in a monotone voice.

Surya pressed his ear to the door and listened for a long moment. "I don't hear anything. However if anything _did_ happen to Kaylani and her baby, then they definitely would've told us."

"I agree," Mokuren said. "We'll see them again after we come back with Lady Archana."

Daunte sighed, and pressed a hand to the door as well. "Bye, Arin," he said softly.

They walked up the stairs to the main hall, where a familiar face was there to greet them. "Yo! Are we going to go save a princess or what?"

Daunte arched an eyebrow at Gunther, and then looked at his hip. Gunther's talwar sword was strapped there. He looked back up at Gunther. "Lord Bearyl reinstated you?"

"Of course," Gunther said easily. "You see, I'm _quite_ the master of persuasion."

"He was probably crawling on his knees _begging_ for his sword back," Roen muttered in Daunte's ear. Daunte almost snorted.

"So it will be the six of us, then," Gunther said. He nodded his approval. "Did you guys stock up on items when you left Tenaga? Unfortunately we don't have any merchants here yet, and though Agameru will sell us anything it's in the _opposite_ direction of the Great Cistern."

"We got some items," Daunte reassured him. He ruffled through his bag and found a couple medical herbs and the escape scroll and handed them to Gunther. "So we should be all set."

The courtyard of the castle was all abuzz about Princess Kaylani and her baby. Daunte kept his ears open and he thankfully heard nothing about either being in danger. Yet strangely, nobody was discussing the baby using gender pronouns. It were as though nobody knew whether or not Silvano and Kaylani's baby was a boy or girl.

 _Well, we're bound to find out eventually._

"The Great Cistern is due south of here, just northeast of Winter Hill," Gunther said. "If we don't run into too many problems, we should get there in about four hours."

"Let's see what sort of ambush they have planned for us," Surya said grimly.

They took off riding and followed Gunther southward. The Great Cistern was close to the capital and was the epicenter of all of Nagarea's plumbing. It put Daunte on edge to be getting so close to Mlkwt Alsmwat while as a wanted man, but he knew he had no other choice if he wanted to help rescue Archana. Luckily they faced minimal problems on the road. Only the occasional monster and a handful of travelers steering towards Mlkwt Alsmwat.

"If you don't mind my asking," Gunther said suddenly, after three hours of riding. "What kind of person is Princess Archana? If she's _half_ as beautiful as her sister, then…" he chuckled to himself.

"Lady Archana is a fine woman with a kind heart," Israfil told him curtly. " _And_ she is spoken for."

"Really?" Gunther arched an eyebrow. "By you?"

Israfil gave Gunther a glare that was so dark, Daunte was certain it could've killed Gunther if it had been a weapon. But while Israfil remained silent, Surya spoke up. "Archana is widowed and is in her mourning period. She cannot legally take a husband until it is finished, but she doesn't seem inclined to anyways."

Gunther looked surprised. "Widowed? Just how old is she? Princess Kaylani looks younger than me, so I can't imagine her sister being too much older than her!"

"…Archana isn't yet thirty years old," Surya said. It was a vague answer, but he said it with obvious reluctance.

"By Nagar, she's a widow so young?!" Gunther shook his head. "That's a terrible shame!"

"Yes, it is," Mokuren said softly.

"But what's her personality like?" Gunther continued. "I mean, the fact that she's a widow before the age of thirty shouldn't be her defining character trait!"

"I'm sure you'd get along with her," Surya said dryly. "Archana used to be a…uh, weirdo. She had very eccentric mannerisms and no matter what was going on or what type of day it was, she always seemed to be in a good mood. Her behavior tended to be infectious though, and everybody always started acting weird whenever she visited Sol-Falena."

"Remember when she got the bright idea to paint the main hall of the Sun Palace _emerald green_?" Mokuren laughed. "That was before Princess Signe was born. Lady Archana thought that green paint would complement the carpet and the floors! We all got really excited and we were ready to paint! Oh—it got everywhere! Little Princess Farrin got green paint all over her dress and there were tiny green footprints all over the floor! And Prince—you and I kept flicking our paint brushes at each other so _we_ became covered in paint! And-and, remember when Prince Freyr accidentally hit Lady Archana's hair with his wet paintbrush? She just laughed and grabbed handfuls of green paint and rubbed it in her hair! And Lady Kaylani was making green hand prints on the walls!"

" _That_ was great," Surya admitted, grinning a little. "Until Aunt Lym and my parents brought their full fury down upon us and forced us to clean up the mess. It took over a _month_ to wash away all the green paint!" he shook his head. "That was…ten years ago, I think."

"I remember that," Israfil said amusedly. "I was visiting Sol-Falena that day with my father and two of my brothers, when we heard the Queen's screams all the way from the Parliament building. We ran as fast as we could to see what was the matter, only to find a quarter section of the wall and floor—and all of you, of course—covered in green paint. And Lady Archana…" he laughed softly. "She was trying to excuse your guy's actions by claiming the color green warded off _bad omens_. Then she slipped in a puddle of paint and fell right into it, and it stained the entire back of her dress. And she just kept laughing!"

Daunte couldn't help but laugh. The story sounded so outrageous that it was difficult to picture in his head. But he knew a story so outrageous _had_ to be true.

"It _was_ hard taking Father and Aunt Lym seriously when Archana and Kaylani were laughing so hard." Surya's expression grew grim and he looked down. "I miss that Archana. I haven't seen that side of her since…" he shook his head and straightened in his saddle. "We're wasting time. Let's get going."

They reached the Great Cistern just a little over an hour later. As the reservoir was located underground, the main building looked like nothing more than a small, one-story white house. They found a safe placed to secure their horses, but Daunte was on edge.

There were no guards on duty. There was no one guarding the door, and he saw nobody inside when he looked in the windows. He tested the door handle, and sure enough it swung open with little effort. He looked at the others and saw they were also on edge.

 _We're_ _ **definitely**_ _walking into a trap._

"We'll need to be careful from here on out," Surya said softly. "With any luck Archana is all right, but they might have hurt her in order to get at us."

"I will make them pay if they did such a thing," Israfil said. His tone had become dark and was filled with ominous promise.

They entered the building and saw that it was indeed empty. There was a giant manhole opening in the center of the room and it was open fully, revealing a set of metal stairs. Along one wall were two treasure chests, also undisturbed. Inside one was a strong medicinal potion. Inside the other one, however…puzzled Daunte.

He lifted his loot in both hands, brow furrowed in confusion. It looked like a book, but it had no cover. The pages were secured together with tightly wounded string. He flipped it open idly, scanning the pages, before closing it again to see the cover. He traced the title with his finger before reading it aloud. " _'Beauty and the Beast'_." He looked at the others. "Does anyone know what this means?"

Surya took it from Daunte and flipped it open. "It looks like a book, but the writing style looks strange." He closed it shut and handed it back to Daunte. "We'll worry about it later. Just stash it with our other items."

Daunte complied and the group turned their attention towards the stairs. They led down into darkness. He could hear nothing but the sound of water from inside. The group moved single-file down the stairs, not letting their guard down. The stairwell was narrow, and the walls closed tight around them.

Daunte wondered to himself _how_ the monsters could've gotten into the Cistern, if the main entrance was a narrow staircase, but he ultimately surmised that there had to be more than one way to get inside. Much like the ruins they'd found in the Dark Chasm.

They reached the Great Cistern. It was a chilly environment dimly lit. They were on a stone, damp walkway over water. Tall pillars lined up and reached the high ceiling. Below them, the water from Golden River rushed in, forming a deep river between the walkways.

"Archana?" Surya tried calling out. They received no reply.

"This structure is incredible," Israfil said softly, running his hand along the wall. This reminds of what my father used to tell me about with a castle in Ceras Lake. How despite the fact that it'd been submerged in a lake for hundreds of years, there had been no structural damage and no decay to the foundation."

"Mom told me about that castle, too," Surya said. "She'd said that they suspected that it'd been built by the Sindar race. Perhaps _this_ place was also built by them too?"

"I don't know what the Sindar are, but the Great Cistern is one of the oldest structures in Nagarea," Gunther said. "It was here even before the Great Earthquake. Whoever or _whatever_ built this place built it in a way so it could last."

A low growl reverberated from the darkness and the group quickly armed themselves. "Here we go," Surya said softly.

Because of the close quarters of the Great Cistern, Daunte did feel like they were being overwhelmed by monsters. He saw the giant rats again, but their fur was tar black this time and their eyes were eerily gray in color. They were also much stronger, too. And if that wasn't enough, they also kept running into spiders that were the size of dogs that spat poisonous venom. Those battles were far from pleasant, and while Daunte didn't like getting hit with their venom, he liked it even _less_ when the venom missed them entirely and flew into the water below.

 _No wonder the water's contaminated down here._

They fought the monsters off, trying desperately to kill them with minimal mess, and trying even harder from preventing their dead bodies from falling into the water. It caused their movements to slow down, and it didn't help that the layout of the Great Cistern itself was confusing. They could never stay on one walkway for long; it kept reaching a dead-end, sometimes punctuated with the odd treasure chest, but then they would have to cross an arched bridge to get to the other side. Every so often Surya called out for his cousin, but the only thing that greeted them was either silence or the answering cry of a monster.

That was when it happened. Daunte had taken the lead and was rounding a corner when he felt something slam into him. He hadn't been expecting it, and the momentum knocked him straight off the walkway and into the water below.

"DAUNTE!" Roen shrieked.

Daunte frantically waved his arms underwater. He had no idea how to swim. He bobbed to the surface long enough to get a huge gulp of air before the water swallowed him up. He was only vaguely aware that the water had a sour taste, and that the color was darker than it had in other areas.

 _This is contaminated water._

He couldn't have imagined any worse death than drowning in polluted water. He squeezed his eyes shut and gripped his right wrist to his chest. _True Rune, HELP ME!_

He suddenly felt heat on his chest, and within seconds the burning sensation in his lungs relaxed. He opened his eyes and looked down. The True Rune was vibrating in time with his own heartbeat.

Daunte became aware that the water around him began changing. With each vibration of his True Rune, the color lightened more and more. Soon he could see more than just a few centimeters in front of himself. He could see the walls, and he could see the floor.

And he could see the bodies of several monsters floating around him. But…it was strange. As the clear water stretched out and enveloped the bodies, the bodies simply…disappeared. They evaporated into nothing, as though they'd never been there at all.

 _W-What the…is my Rune_ _ **purifying**_ _the water?!_

Daunte jolted as a hand grabbed the back of his collar and yanked him up, pulling his head out of the water. "Got him!"

Daunte took in a deep breath of air, and began gagging. He realized he didn't have much strength to keep himself up, but the hand held him steady. He looked up and saw Surya, hanging upside down along the wall. Above them, Roen and the others were holding Surya tight, two holding each ankle.

"Pull us up!" Surya shouted. The other four complied and pulled Surya up, and by extension Daunte. Daunte was soaked to the bone, but he barely noticed as he was dragged up onto the walkway. Now out of the water he began coughing even more, and was alarm to see that he was vomiting water.

"Daunte!" Roen knelt down beside him and grabbed his shoulders. "Are you all right?!"

Daunte nodded jerkily. "W…What attacked me?"

"It looked like a giant bat or something," Mokuren said. "It blindsided you and knocked you into the water. Thankfully we got to you in time."

"T-Thank you." Daunte cleared his throat, satisfied he'd coughed up all the water he'd inhaled, and struggled to his feet. Roen helped him stand. "Thank you all so much."

"Hey," Gunther said suddenly. He was looking over the edge. "Does anybody else notice that?" he pointed.

Daunte looked to where he was pointing. He hadn't been paying much attention to the water, but now he could see that it was…greenish brown. Just seeing it made him want to vomit again.

But in the center of the river, he could see a large circle of crystal clear water. Daunte gestured to it. "I-Is that where I fell?"

"Yes," Surya said. He looked at Daunte. "What did you do?"

"The Rune activated—I think it was reacting to me drowning." Daunte looked down at it. "It started vibrating, and—and I noticed that the water _did_ clear up around me."

"It purified the water?!" Mokuren exclaimed. "That's incredible!"

"Quick, do it again!" Gunther insisted. "Try purifying this whole section of water!"

"As important as this is, shouldn't we continue moving?" Israfil asked softly.

"Yeah, Archana is waiting for us." Surya looked indecisive. "Daunte, go ahead and do what you did before. Then we need to get going and fast."

Do what he did before? But Daunte didn't _intentionally_ purify the water! He just asked the True Rune to save him!

 _But I can't leave it like this, can't I?_

Daunte nodded, and took off his tekko. "Can someone lower me back down there?"

"Here, we'll all do it," Surya said. "Just lie down and scoot yourself over the edge. We'll lower you the rest of the way."

"I just hope this doesn't drain the True Rune of its power," Roen said softly.

Two grabbed one ankle, and three grabbed the other, as Daunte was lowered back down towards the water. Now that he had control of his senses, Daunte could smell the water. It smelled as unpleasant as it looked. They lowered him as far as they could, and he reached out the rest of the way, submerging his right hand in the water.

"True Rune," he said, staring at the symbol on his hand. "I've seen what you can do to this water. Please, use your strength to clean the rest of it up!"

The Rune didn't have a habit of responding to his verbal commands, so Daunte was very shocked to see it glow with this one. The water surrounding the hand immediately cleared, and within seconds it billowed out, swallowing up the unpleasant color and odors and replacing them with clean, fresh water. It was clean enough that he could see through to the bottom, even in the dim light!

Then just as abruptly, the Rune stopped glowing. Daunte stared at it in confusion until he felt the others pull him back up. "We did it!" Roen cheered. "Look, Daunte!"

Daunte did look. The murky, polluted water below them was gone. Now it was just as fresh as the Golden River on the surface. "I can't believe that worked," he breathed.

"This is very impressive," Surya admitted. "I guess the citizens don't have to worry about contaminated drinking water anymore."

"No, not quite," Gunther said grimly. "This was just a small section of free flowing water. There's at least three vaults of water down here that are even more contaminated than this one was."

"We should find them and clean them up as well!" Roen said.

"I agree, if we have the time," Surya said. "But my cousin is somewhere down here and we need to find her before anything else happens to her!"

"At least those vaults are separated from the rest of the water supply," Gunther offered.

"…All right," Roen agreed.

They continued on the path. Daunte hung back a little, still staring at the True Rune. _What are you, exactly? You act as a healing rune, but you also trigger flashbacks at random for me. AND you can purify contaminated water? Is there anything you_ can't _do?_

The True Rune flickered briefly and Daunte started. He didn't expect the Rune to react to his _thoughts_.

 _But it's sentient, right? So it's like a living thing attached to my arm…and you choose whether to react to my words and thoughts, or act out on your own._

* * *

Daunte knew that the Great Cistern housed all of the fresh water in Nagarea. But never did he anticipate how… _large_ the place was. It seemed to go on for kilometers.

They got lost multiple times. Many of the walkways seemed to lead to nowhere and Daunte questioned what their purpose was. Admittedly he was glad to find that many of the workers of the Cistern had stashed healing items in treasure chests (and they were even lucky enough to find a rune scroll—Surya said it contained a lightning spell, " _Angry Blow_ "), but the endless corridors and the sound of rushing water became troublesome after a while.

"Do we still have that escape scroll?" Surya asked at one point.

"Right here," Gunther said, pulling it out. "Don't worry, I won't lose it."

"Good. I don't intend walking back out of here after we find Archana."

"This is very strange," Mokuren said softly. "I thought we were walking into an ambush, but no traps have been sprung upon us."

"I'm sure there'll be _plenty_ once we reach my cousin."

Daunte heard something just ahead and stopped in his tracks. He signaled to everyone else to stop as well. "What's wrong?" Roen asked.

"Does anyone else hear that?" Daunte asked. He listened more carefully. It didn't sound like an approaching monster. But the sound…it was out of place for a place like this. "It sounds like…singing."

"Singing?" Surya surged forward. "Is it Archana?!"

Daunte moved closer, following the sound. The others followed quickly behind him. The sound got louder. It was a female voice, but…

"That's a Nagarist hymn," Roen said as they drew closer.

"Then it's not Archana?" Surya drooped his head.

"Damn it all!"

They were all startled by this sudden shout. They rushed forward and ran into a room on their left. Daunte was immediately struck by the same sour smell he'd experienced before, when he'd fallen into contaminated water.

"I can't get the octaves right! _Why_ I can't it right?!"

There was a young woman standing in front of them, who was standing in front of a large basin of dirty water. Her indigo hair was cut short, like a boy's, but she wore a pale yellow thin veil on her head with a matching tunic and dark pants. The woman was shaking her left hand in frustration. "I went through so much trouble to get you, Sound Rune! Why aren't you working for me?! Is my voice not good enough for you?!"

"Excuse me?" Daunte said.

The woman shrieked in alarm. The Rune on her left hand suddenly glowed, and her shriek amplified and vibrated off the walls. Daunte's ears rang painfully and he slapped his hands over his ears. He looked over his shoulder and saw that the others mimicked the motion.

"A-Ah, I'm sorry!" the woman turned, revealing a youthful face and wide blue eyes. "I haven't mastered the use of my Sound Rune, so it reacts to the octaves of my voice at random! W-What are all of you doing down here?"

"We could ask you the same thing," Surya said, wiggling at one ear with his index finger. "Haven't you noticed that this place is monster-infested?"

"And _how_ did you get down here anyway, miss?" Roen added. "The Great Cistern is a restricted area."

The woman waved a dismissive hand. "There's more than one way to get in here! I thought that with such close quarters I could work on getting my Sound Rune to work, but it's not listening to me! I'm starting to wonder if I even have the proper voice for it!" she huffed and hung her head slightly. "Maybe if I had a _sound set_ , I might get this Rune to work properly…"

"Excuse me Miss, uh…" Surya floundered.

"Liron," the woman replied. "My name is Liron."

"How long have you been down here?"

"Four days."

Daunte arched a brow at this answer, but Surya continued. "Okay, Miss Liron. Did you happen to see anyone be carried in down here?"

Liron thought about this for a long moment. "…No. I haven't seen anyone besides the six of you."

"Da—"

"But I _heard_ something odd two days ago."

"Really?" Surya perked up again. "What did you hear?"

"Two women's voices," Liron told him. "They were very distinctive. I couldn't understand what they were saying, but I could sense the emotions in their voices by the different octaves they emitted."

"What did they sound like?"

"One woman had a harsh tone. Very authoritative. My Sound Rune reacted negatively to her voice and it actually seemed to _amplify_ it. And the other…" Liron shook her head. "The other voice was beautiful. Very melodic. But by the octaves in her tone, i-it sounded like she was crying."

Surya surged forward and grabbed Liron's hands. "Which direction did you hear these voices from?"

"Northwest of here," Liron said, pointing in the opposite direction from where they came. "Based upon how the voices echoed off the walls, they seemed to be coming from a rightward direction."

"Thank you!" Surya let her go and took off running out of the room. Mokuren and Israfil quickly followed.

"Thank you for your help, Miss," Gunther said to Liron, using the same deep tone he seemed to reserve just for women. "Why not accompany us out of here?"

"I can't leave!" Liron protested. "Not until I get the octaves right!" She turned back around to face the contaminated water. "I wish I had a sound set. The Sound Rune would _surely_ listen to me if I had a sound set!"

"Daunte," Roen said, nodding to the water in front of her. "That must be one of the contaminated vaults, right? Do you think you can…?"

Daunte wanted to catch up to Surya and the others, but he also didn't feel good about leaving this vault like this. After a moment he nodded. "I'll make it quick."

It was much easier reaching into this water, but it seemed to be ten times more contaminated than the river he fell into. There was an oily film on the surface of the water, and Daunte saw visible growth spots of bacteria. Daunte himself felt dirtier just having his hand in it. "True Rune, please purify this water," he said softly.

The True Rune glowed, and within seconds the water reacted to its power. The oily residue evaporated and it quickly cleared until there was nothing left but fresh water.

"You did it again!" Gunther praised. "That just leaves two vaults! Too bad we don't know where they are…"

"We'll find them another time," Daunte, wiping his wet hand on his pants. "In the meantime we should catch up to the others." He glanced at Liron one last time. "Are you sure you don't want to come with us? It's very dangerous down here."

Liron shook her head. "I won't leave until I unlock the mysteries of this Sound Rune! If I had a sound set I might be able to do something, but…" she shook her head. "If you guys like, there's a hidden ladder back that way." She pointed in the direction they came from. "It leads right up into Winter Hill, but it points to the southwest provinces."

"Thank you," Daunte said. Liron turned back around to face the now fresh water and they ran from the room. He could hear Liron begin singing again even as they rounded a corner.

"She said the voices came from the right, right?" Roen asked Daunte. "So we should stick to the right until we find the others!"

They followed the right-side walkway and kept making right turns. Daunte was concerned they might have lost them, but he saw more than one dead monster along the walkway, so that was a big indication that Surya and the others had come this way. "Surya?" Daunte shouted ahead of them.

Five minutes later, the three Falenans were running back towards them. "There you guys are!" Surya panted. "What took you three so long?!"

"Daunte purified the contaminated vault," Roen said, pausing to catch his breath. "Is something the matter?"

"Yes," Israfil said. "We're on the right track…and we found our trap."

"Really?" Gunther said, sounding amused.

But Mokuren shook her head. "This isn't good. We might not be cut out for this fight."

"How so?" Daunte asked.

Surya waved to them. "Come and see."

They followed the path and it lead to a giant room. No sounds could be heard beside the explosive sounds of rushing water from multiple sluice gates below. Daunte looked ahead and saw a narrow walkway over the water. But at the end of the walkway was…

Roen reeled back, and pulled out his bolo knife. "I-Is that a _dragon_?!"

"Looks like a Water Dragon," Surya said. Daunte assumed such since the dragon was bright blue and his tail was hanging over the ledge and into the water. Surya clenched his right hand into a fist. "Which means your Fire Rune won't do much damage to it, Roen."

"Aw, dammit."

"I'll lead from the front," Israfil said softly, also drawing his weapon. "I'll strike it quickly with the power of my Titan Rune. With any luck that will disorient the beast and we can move in for a swift kill."

"I'll take the front with you," Mokuren volunteered. "With my Counter Rune I'll reflexively strike back when it hurts me. It'll be easier for my Rune to activate if I'm out front."

"It won't activate if it uses magic," Surya warned her. "Especially if it starts breathing blue fire at you."

"I know. I'll be careful."

"Damn, my Rune is useless against a monster like this," Gunther grumbled. "Next rune shop we go to, I'm getting a Lightning Rune."

"That's not going to do us a lot of good now, will it? If we leave to go to one, then we'll still have to travel all the way through this place."

"Which is why I'm going to do it after. I don't intend to die down here."

 _Neither do I_ , Daunte thought.

It was unnerving to approach the Water Dragon in such a way. It stood its ground and did not take to the air. It watched them approach patiently, and its patience made Daunte even more worried. It wasn't acting like a normal monster.

 _This is definitely the trap they laid out for us._

"Daunte," Surya said suddenly. Daunte turned to look at him. "Don't use your spell until we absolutely need it, okay?"

"All right," Daunte agreed, focusing once more on the monster ahead of them.

The Water Dragon didn't remain idle for long however. The moment Israfil reached the platform it let out a loud roar. "Get into formation!" Israfil shouted.

"Prince, stay behind me!" Mokuren shouted.

"Can't let a lady stay on the front line by herself!" Gunther laughed. He raced up to stand beside Mokuren and Israfil, while Daunte, Surya, and Roen took to the back row. Daunte looked down at his tekko, a short-range weapon, and wondered how his fists were supposed to reach the dragon.

 _Just stay alive, and keep your friends alive too._

Israfil struck first, utilizing the power of his Titan Rune and delivering a devastating blow to the Water Dragon. The beast faltered, but it did not become disorientated. " _Fog of Deception_!" Surya called out, activating his Water Rune.

"Can I at least _try_ a fire spell on it?" Roen wondered.

"Certainly, but it won't affect the beast much," Mokuren said over her shoulder.

Roen raised his right hand. " _Flaming Arrows_!" A bright red symbol in the shape of a flame rose into the air briefly before a shower of fire rained down upon the dragon. It roared in pain, but Daunte noticed that its scales didn't even become scorched.

It was a tough battle, but Daunte felt reassured by the presence of four seasoned warriors. Nobody hesitated when they attacked the beast, but the dragon usually attacked with two strikes. Sometimes it clawed at them, sometimes it swung its tail, but more often than not it breathed blue fire upon them. It was the color of clean water, but it burned like a hot flame. The beast was unrelenting.

" _Angry Blow_!" Gunther shouted, unrolling the rune scroll. Not even a second later a massive blue lightning bolt consumed the Water Dragon. The air crackled with the electricity. It roared in pain and faltered, but it remained steady on its feet.

"Damn, I'm _definitely_ getting a Lightning Rune!" Gunther exclaimed.

Daunte did feel like the odds were in their favor. However the fight continued to wear on, and because it did they wasted most of their spells and techniques. And though the Water Dragon was injured, it was still standing.

The beast roared again, and turned its body to swing its tail again. Daunte saw who the target was and shouted, "Surya, look out!"

Before the prince reacted, Mokuren jumped in front of him and accepted the blow to her torso. Daunte flinched as he audibly heard her ribs break from the blow, and the bodyguard skidded across the wet stone floor. " _Mokuren_!" Surya hollered.

But just as quickly, Mokuren was on her feet lunging at the Water Dragon. She swung the naginata and hit home, managing to draw blood. As the creature reeled back Mokuren coughed into her hand and stumbled backwards.

"You damned idiot!" Surya grabbed her to hold her steady. "What were you thinking?!"

"Only of you, Prince," she answered quietly, without a hint of irony in her voice. Daunte saw that she had coughed up _blood_ though, and his stomach twisted. He raised his right hand, just saw Surya shouted, "Daunte, now!"

" _Howl_!" Daunte shouted. The True Rune's symbol flashed in the air before all six of them were surrounded by the golden-green light Daunte had become familiar with. He felt his injuries heal up, and he saw the others straighten a little more. Mokuren herself also looked much better.

"M-My Titan Rune is restored!" Israfil said with astonishment. He looked at Daunte. "Your Rune can restore spells on other runes?!"

Daunte shrugged. "I suppose so."

"Then I'll finish this quickly." Israfil activated his Rune and lunged at the Water Dragon again. He delivered another devastating blow to the monster, and the beast faltered considerably this time. The dragon however ended up falling when Roen called for the _Flaming Arrows_ spell again. Though the damage was minimal, the dragon's battered body could take no more and it collapsed in a thunderous heap.

"Is everyone okay?" Surya asked. He looked at Mokuren in particular. "How are your ribs?"

"Well, my chest doesn't feel like it's caving in on my heart so I think I'm okay," Mokuren told him cheerfully.

"Just _don't_ do that again. I don't appreciate you hurting yourself for my sake."

"There's nothing for you to worry about, Prince. I'm your bodyguard, so I will look after you."

"But look after _yourself,_ too."

"Ooh, _jackpot_!" Gunther hollered. He was currently looting the Water Dragon's corpse. "Dragon armor! This costs an arm and a leg at the shops!"

"The dragon was carrying bits…somehow," Roen said, pouring the coins into his hand. His eyes went wide. "By Nagar…this had to be 30,000 bits!"

Daunte noticed something beside the dragon's body. He knelt down on the ground and picked it up. It looked like a piece of a crystal, but…but it had a symbol on it. The symbol looked _very_ familiar to Daunte.

"That's a Resurrection piece."

Daunte looked over his shoulder at Surya, who was leaning over him. "Gather three more pieces of the same, and you can take it to a runemaster to form the Resurrection Rune."

Resurrection Rune. The Rune that his True Rune may or may not have been the parent rune of. _I-If I assemble this rune, will I be able to figure out how to control my True Rune?_

"Prince?"

Daunte looked up at Israfil's call. The General hadn't taken part in looting the Water Dragon's corpse. He was standing in front of the far wall in front of a statue of Nagar, holding something between two fingers. They hurried over and Daunte saw that it was a black lace ribbon that had been tied in a cheerfully large bow around the statue of the War God.

Surya quickly untied the ribbon and held it in both hands. Moments later his hands began trembling. "This is Archana's. This is Archana's!" He bolted to the right, where there was an open passageway.

"Prince!" Mokuren shouted, but Israfil took off running after him. The others quickly followed, running swiftly down the narrow corridor. The lights down this way had suddenly grown dimmer, but they didn't stop.

They reached a large room, even larger than the one before, and to their left was a sluice gate that was high enough to reach the walkway. They rounded the corner towards the staircase, their eyes struggling to adjust to the dimmer light.

They walked two-by-two up the stairs when Daunte heard it. The rushing water was surprisingly quiet in this area, but Daunte still heard it. The sound of uneven, frightened breathing.

They reached the top step and up ahead on the slush gate Daunte saw a woman standing huddled in the dim light. She was dressed entirely in black and had her back to them, and her silver hair was curly and worn long and loose to her waist. She was hugging her arms, and she was shaking violently.

Daunte looked to Surya. "Is that her?" he asked softly.

Surya didn't answer. He took a couple of steps forward. "Archana?" he called out.

The figure stiffened and slowly turned around, revealing a stunningly beautiful woman with a face streaked with tears. Lady Archana was alone and unguarded, yet the distress in the twenty-seven year old's expression and in her dark bloodshot eyes unnerved Daunte. Her lips moved, and she spoke in such a soft voice that Daunte almost didn't hear her.

But he _did_ hear her. "Stay back."

"Archana!" Surya surged forward, quickly followed by Mokuren and Israfil. "Archana, you're saf—"

" _Stay back_!" Archana shrieked suddenly.

The group stopped at her shout, and they looked at each other in confusion. Daunte then noticed something. Archana's complexion was very pale, but her forehead looked scorched, as though it had a sunburn. In the center of her forehead was dark red, and he could've sworn—it was strange. It looked like the dark red spot on her forehead formed the shape of a _skull_.

He was so surprised he nearly held his tongue. But he found the courage to shout, "What is that thing on her forehead?" and pointed.

"Forehead?!" Surya looked as well and his eyes widened. "A-Archana—is that a _Rune_?!"

"How very astute of you both."

Archana flinched violently at this voice, and Daunte's body quickly filled with dread. _No…it can't be._

"Good thing all of you know how to keep on the trail, like good dogs." On a separate platform meters away, a figure emerged from the shadows. Daunte tensed as he recognized the Dark Chasm's Matron standing there. "Allow me to introduce all of you to the _Exploding Rune_. It's a Rune that I developed myself. You see, with just a little bit of power…" she raised her right hand and it glowed pale red.

The Rune on Archana's head began to glow and she went rigid. She threw back her head and let out a blood-curdling scream of agony as the glow increased in size and vibrancy.

" _Lady Archana_!" Israfil shouted. He started running towards her, but Archana threw up her hands. "S-Stay away from me!" she choked out between her screams.

The Matron lowered her hand and the glow immediately faded from Archana's head. The Princess fell to her knees, her breathing ragged. "With just a little bit of power, the Rune will explode," the Matron continued. "The blast from the explosion is powerful enough to rip its host's body to pieces, and rip to pieces anyone who happens to be standing within two meters of the host."

"You _bitch_!" Surya raged, drawing his tri-nunchaku. "I'll make you pay for doing this to my cousin!"

"Are you insane?!" Mokuren also shouted. "Lady Archana is a _Falenan Princess_! She is one of your hostages! How can you conceive of throwing her life away so savagely?!"

"True, she is a princess," the Matron agreed. "But Princess Archana is merely _fourth_ in line for the throne, isn't she? So her value isn't as potent as, say, Princess Farrin or Signe is it? So what does it really matter if she dies here? Your country wouldn't crumble to ashes with her demise, would it?"

Israfil swiftly drew his sword and pointed the tip towards the Matron. His body was trembling with unchecked fury, and he looked like he was snarling. "Know this. I will never forget this, and I will not rest until I see you pay for what you've done to Lady Archana!"

"Oh?" the Matron turned her gaze towards him, completely unperturbed by his threat. "Such strong words from a man in no position to be making threats. And with such _feeling_ , too." Israfil flinched, but it was so slight that it was practically unnoticeable.

"Lady Matron," Daunte said, stepping forward. "You didn't attach an Exploding Rune to a valuable hostage without a reason. What do you want?"

"And here I thought you were a smart boy. What do you _think_ I want?" The Matron glared at him. "Hand over the True Rune on your hand or else I'm going to blow the Princess into pieces."

Roen looked at Daunte with alarm and Daunte raised his right hand. Of course the Matron wanted the Rune. The existence of the Dark Chasm was in part due to the hunt for the Rune. But it still amazed Daunte that she would continue to go so far to force him to give it up.

"Daunte," Surya said softly. Daunte looked at him and the prince had a look of desperation on his face. Mokuren had her hands clasped tightly in front of her.

Daunte knew that if he didn't hand the Rune over that the Matron would most definitely follow up with her threats and kill Archana. But there was also the overwhelming consequences that could follow if the Matron obtained the Rune.

"D-Don't…" Archana pleaded in a soft voice. She was slowly rising back to her feet. "Don't give in to her. Don't hand over such p-power to her. Please…"

"I want to save my cousin," Surya said, his tone still soft. "But based on my dealings with this woman, I don't trust her to let Archana go once she has the Rune. Daunte…" he gripped his own bangs and ducked his head. "Daunte, what should we do?!"

Daunte looked back at his hand. He'd tried before to give the True Rune the command to leave him, and it didn't. How was he supposed to get out of this situation?

"My patience is wearing thin," the Matron said irritably. "You need to make a decision, or I'm going to activate the Exploding Rune. Will you give me the True Rune, boy?"

Daunte glanced towards Israfil and Archana. The General was still the minimum safe distance away from the princess but his desperation mirrored Surya's. Archana was shaking her head at him, clearly indicating to Daunte that she didn't want him to hand over the True Rune.

Swallowing thickly, Daunte squeezed his eyes shut and raised his right hand. "T…True Rune. Please leave me and go to Lady Matron." One second passed, and then another. After several more seconds passed Daunte opened his eyes and lowered his hand. The True Rune was still branded onto the back of his right hand.

 _It's still refusing to leave me! What am I supposed to do?!_

"Am I supposed to be amused by that cute display?" the Matron demanded sardonically. "Maybe you aren't taking my threats seriously enough, hmm?" she raised her right hand again at Archana. "No!" Daunte hollered. "Please don't!"

Archana screamed again as light lit up from the Exploding Rune. It lasted much longer this time, and the rune began to sizzle on her skin as her body shook violently. " _STOP IT_!" Surya shrieked. He snapped his tri-nunchaku into a pole form and chucked it at the Matron like a javelin. She stopped triggering the Exploding Rune and swatted the air at the tri-nunchaku. Just centimeters from her head it whipped away and spun through the air, clattering to the floor.

Archana collapsed again, half-sitting, half-lying on the damp stone ground. "My Lady!" Israfil sheathed his sword and tried to hurry to her side, but Archana raised a trembling hand. "Stop! I order you to stop, General!"

Israfil stopped immediately with her command. His arms were raised slightly as though he wanted to reach for her but couldn't. "I…I understand, my Lady."

"Lady Archana, are you all right?!" Mokuren rushed forward to stand beside Israfil. Both were just a little over two meters away from her.

Archana raised her head weakly. Her eyes were closed and her whole forehead was now bright red. Daunte could see small blisters forming on the skin surrounding the Exploding Rune. "I…I'm dizzy. I feel so sick…I…"

" _What do you want from me_?!" Daunte hollered, losing his temper. He glared murderously at the Matron. "I commanded the True Rune to go to you, and it wouldn't! I can't force it off my hand, no matter how many times I tell it to leave me! Do you want me to cut off my hand and throw it over to you?! Huh?!"

"That would suffice," the Matron told him.

Surya grabbed Daunte's wrist and jerked his hand down. "I want to save Archana, but there must be some other way! There _must_ be!"

"My Lady." Israfil had knelt down on the ground so that he was the same level as Archana. He was keeping his voice low and calm. "My Lady, I swore an oath to Queen Lymsleia and your parents that I would bring you home safe. I intend to see that oath through to the very end. I'll save you from this, I swear."

Archana shook her head, but by that point she was so weak that her head simply rolled around on her shoulders. "D…Don't worry about me. My sister…and Farrin and Signe and Freyr. They—They n-need more help than I. I…" she was gasping for air but she forced the words out. "I know where Signe is!"

"You do?!" Surya shouted with excitement. "Where?!"

"A-A town south from here…it's called Kõrkus."

 _Kõrkus?_ Daunte looked at Roen, who was equally shocked. Kõrkus _was_ his hometown after all. He also saw Gunther, who'd been uncharacteristically silent throughout all this. The lieutenant had a grim expression on his face.

"So d-don't worry about me. Save Signe, and save my sister. Kaylani…she's about to have her baby. I…"

"Archana, Freyr and Kaylani are safe!" Surya told her. Archana was struggling back to her feet without saying another word. "We left Kaylani in a safe place and she's having her baby in that place! She _begged_ us to come here and save you, Archana! Don't try to make yourself sound insignificant compared to them! We're not leaving here without you!"

"There's no use trying to reason with a woman who has a death wish."

A cold chill stabbed through Daunte, and he looked at the Matron disbelievingly. "Am I wrong, Princess Archana?" she asked softly. "Isn't reuniting with your dead husband your ultimate desire? The pain of losing him has never left you, and even now with your official seven-year mourning period drawing to a close you have no desire to seek out a new husband." The Matron hummed, and pressed her covered face into her palm thoughtfully. "Your _Darrick_ must have been quite a man, for you to wallow like this for so long."

"Shut up, you _witch_!" Surya hollered at her. "You know _nothing_ about Archana!"

"Don't I, now? It's a terrible feeling, isn't it Princess? The overwhelming sense of loss. The emptiness in the bottom of your heart. The void of heartache that makes you feel like you're choking. The never-ending sense of just being _alone_ , because your one true love isn't there beside you."

Archana said nothing to these words, but Daunte saw tears falling from her bent over head. "Maybe this situation I've put you in is a _mercy_ ," the Matron continued. "After all, this boy doesn't seem to want to hand over the True Rune, and you've done nothing but object to his handing it over. Does this mean you want to die, Princess? Do you want me to activate that Rune, and—"

It happened so quickly that Daunte nearly fell over in shock. Israfil launched to his feet, unsheathed his sword, and threw it at the Matron like he was throwing a boomerang. It was the same as what Surya had done earlier, but this time the Matron didn't see it coming. She shrieked and ducked out of the way as the massive nodachi embedded in the wall behind her.

As this happened, Israfil surged forward and grabbed Archana by her arms. She cried out in shock as he crushed her against his chest and held onto her in a tight hug.

"General Israfil, what are you doing?!" Surya sputtered.

"Let me go— _let me go_!" Archana found the strength to shout, but didn't have the strength to struggle in his hold. "I-If she activates the Rune, you'll be killed too! Let me go, General!"

"No."

Archana stiffened. Daunte moved forward and he saw that she was wearing a shocked expression. She opened and closed her mouth silently for several moments before she finally spoke. "Why?"

"Because I refuse to leave you like this." He squeezed his arms tighter around her. "I can't allow you to suffer like this alone, so I won't leave your side. No matter what."

Archana looked stunned, and even a little confused. Out of the corner of Daunte's eye though, he saw the Matron get back to her feet.

"I'm done playing games," she spat. "If you're not going to cooperate with me, boy, then you're going to suffer the consequences!" she gestured sharply at Archana while Mokuren screamed, "Please don't!"

The light reappeared on Archana's forehead again and she threw her head back and screamed once more. So much power was emulating from the Exploding Rune that it seemed to vibrate in the air. Israfil grabbed her forehead in his palm, as though trying to futilely pull the Rune off with his fingers before it fully activated. "Archana, NO!" Surya shrieked, trying to rush to his cousin's side, but Mokuren grabbed him and forcibly dragged him away with surprising strength.

Daunte's feet moved on their own and he charged at Archana. He reached out with his right hand and was shocked to see the True Rune activate with his desperation. He honestly had no idea what he could do, but maybe…maybe he could use the power of his True Rune to overpower the Exploding Rune and prevent it from exploding!

He slammed his hand against Archana's forehead, and his True Rune glowed even brighter. "S-Sir Daunte?!" Israfil cried out in shock. Daunte held his other hand to the back of Archana's head and growled as the True Rune's light melded with the light of the Exploding Rune. _Get off her! GET OFF HER!_ In his palm he felt the physical body of the Exploding Rune's crystal and he squeezed his hand around it. It was fastened deep into her skin and he honestly didn't know how he could remove it without a runemaster's assistance but he had to try. He had to try!

Archana was still screaming in pain, and Surya was screaming behind them while struggling in Mokuren's hold. Daunte was aware that both Roen and Gunther were also screaming something, but he had his full concentration on the Rune. The light from the Exploding Rune hadn't dimmed, and he felt the skin on his palm burn and blister from its power. It was so painful, but he didn't dare move his hand away. "True Rune, I command you to destroy the power of this Rune and get it off her!"

The True Rune quickly glowed with bright light and Daunte reflexively squeezed his eyes shut. He heard the Matron cry out from a distance, but then the air filled with silence. He no longer felt the heat of the Exploding Rune in his hand. He let out a short breath and slowly opened his eyes.

And blinked. Daunte was no longer in the Great Cistern. No, he was in a much more aesthetically pleasing place. It was a grand hall so clean and beautiful that he could see his reflection in the floor. It was full of people dressed in festive clothing. He couldn't hear anything, but he saw that the people around him were smiling and talking and laughing with each other.

The silence was broken by the sound of steady breathing. Daunte looked to his left and jumped slightly. Archana was standing beside him dressed in a giant white dress. She looked younger, almost like a teenager—and she was smiling and looked so _happy_. She had an arm around a tall, handsome man who looked just as happy and was smiling with a generous amount of kindness. He leaned down and stole a kiss from Archana, who eagerly reciprocated.

 _The Matron…she said Lady Archana's husband's name was Darrick. This must be Darrick, then. From how they're dressed, they look like they just got married. So this must be their wedding reception._

Archana and Darrick were too busy fawning over each other to pay any attention to the guests. Daunte looked around, searching for Surya, and he started slightly when he caught sight of the prince. But as this was a seven-year-old memory, the prince was significantly younger than he was in the present. Mokuren was by his side, speaking to him in rapid-fire. Whatever she was saying was causing the prince to laugh, but a woman with black hair dressed in a black uniform touched him on the shoulder and gestured to him to keep his voice down. Surya immediately silenced, although when the woman walked away he began giggling again.

Daunte also spotted Kaylani, who was speaking with an older woman with silver hair. The woman looked giddy where she was standing, almost jumping up and down. Daunte wondered if this was Haswar—who Surya had said was Archana and Kaylani's mother. If it was, Haswar looked just as excited about the occasion as her own daughter did.

Daunte craned his neck around, trying to see if he could spot Freyr (and by extension Farrin and Signe), but something else caught his eye. He was startled to see Israfil in attendance, dressed in a pristine-looking uniform. He was standing beside a pillar on the opposite side of the hall from the newly married couple, and he was watching them. He was watching Darrick and Archana talking amongst themselves and stealing kisses from each other—and he looked _happy_. Daunte was genuinely surprised. Based upon the General's demeanor towards Archana, it was obvious even to him that the man felt strongly for Archana.

Yet in this memory he was watching her shower another man with attention and love…and there was no bitterness or resentment in his demeanor or expression. He was watching the happy couple, at the beginning stage of their new life together, and he genuinely looked happy for them.

The steady breathing Daunte had been hearing silenced, and suddenly the patrons around him threw up their hands and cheered. He looked towards Archana and Darrick again and saw that the cooks had brought out a huge white wedding cake. Archana was clapping, even jumping a little where she stood, as the cake was set down on a table in front of them. The couple was presented with their own plates and forks, and Darrick was handed a knife. He cut into the cake and sliced a modest size that he set upon Archana's plate. Archana returned the favor and sliced a piece for him as well.

" _The wedding cake was somehow poisoned."_

Horror filled Daunte's body as he remembered Surya's words and he reached out with his arms. _DON'T!_ He tried to shriek the word, but it didn't pass his throat. All he could do was stand there and watch Archana unsuspectingly offer a forkful of wedding cake to her groom. And he couldn't do anything as Darrick ate the cake from her fork.

And Daunte wheezed, still futilely reaching out with his hands as Darrick similarly fed Archana a forkful of their wedding cake with his fork. _Oh no! No! Somebody has to stop them!_

But nobody saw him. All around him the wedding patrons were soundlessly clapping and cheering. Daunte didn't want to look—he didn't want to watch what was about to happen next.

The servants began slicing up the wedding cake to give to the guests when Daunte heard the first real sound since the memory started. The 'clang' of silverware hitting the floor. Unable to help himself, he looked back to Darrick and Archana.

Archana looked alarmed and Darrick had a stunned expression on his face. Daunte saw that blood was dripping from one of Darrick's nostrils, and Archana quickly pressed a white handkerchief to it. However, not even a moment later blood spurt forth from the other nostril.

And just seconds later, Darrick pitched forward grabbing at his throat. He dry-heaved, as though trying to vomit, before blood gushed out of his mouth. Daunte heard a roaring sound in his ear, like the sound of a surf breaking against the shore. All around him people's mouths were hanging open. They were screaming.

Archana hung onto Darrick, but just as suddenly she grabbed at her own throat and spun around and Darrick collapsed to the floor. Daunte saw that her nose was also bleeding, and her expression was full of pain…and fear.

The roaring faded from the air, but the sounded that replaced it was no better. It was breathing, frantic breathing. It was a woman's voice desperately gasping for breath.

 _Archana._

Archana collapsed to the floor and she convulsed. There was chaos all around them. People were running in all directions, knocking over chairs and tables. A man with long silver hair dressed in a black uniform was frantically gesturing and shouting. He was the only person in the hall that looked calm. Around Daunte, he saw men and women in similar uniforms slamming all the doors shut and drawing their weapons, preventing the guests from leaving. Other uniformed men and women were racing around securing the remaining royals. Surya was breathing heavily—he was panicking. Mokuren was still at his side, looking in all directions and holding her naginata before the black-haired woman from before grabbed them by their hands and steered them away. Israfil was also helping to secure the guests, though he kept looking in Archana's direction with alarm and horror.

" _I don't want to die."_

Daunte turned. Archana was lying on her side on the floor, her convulsions weakening. Blood had gushed from her mouth, and Haswar was leaning over her. She was crying uncontrollably and stroking Archana's hair, shaking her head back and forth in denial. Kaylani was standing over her older sister, and she looked so hysterical that Daunte was sure she would collapse shortly.

" _I don't want to die. I don't want to die."_

Those same five words kept resonating in the air as Daunte stared at the horror in front of him. Tears had spilled out of Archana's eyes and she reached out a violently trembling hand. She was reaching out for Darrick, who lay just less than a meter away from her. The black-haired woman from before had rushed to his side and turned him over onto his back. Daunte saw a blue symbol on the back of her right hand as she lifted it.

But Darrick had gone still, and was lying motionless on the floor.

…Daunte heard a loud 'crunch' in his ears and he blinked. He was back in the Great Cistern, and he was still gripping Archana's forehead.

Archana…she was still in one piece! The Rune hadn't activated!

Daunte was aware he was kneeling on the ground, and Israfil was holding Archana in his lap. The Princess had fallen unconscious, but Daunte felt the Exploding Rune in his hand. It was no longer attached to her forehead. He drew his hand back and looked at his palm. His hand was healed, and there was a shattered crystal in his palm. He looked at Archana's forehead and saw it was still slightly red from burns—but the red skull was gone.

"Archana!" Surya almost knocked Daunte aside as he checked over his cousin. He tapped her cheek with his hand, and Daunte took towards the platform where the Matron had been standing. It was empty. He looked over at Roen, who had his arms folded over his chest. "The Matron fled while you trying to get control of that Rune."

"Archana, are you all right? Please wake up!" Surya looked at Daunte with alarm. "Why isn't she waking up?"

"Prince, please calm down." Mokuren came over and put a hand on his shoulder. "Lady Archana has been through a lot. It's no wonder she fainted."

"But that horrible thing was attached to her head, and that evil witch activated its full power." Surya looked at the broken crystal. "W…What if that thing gave her brain damage?!"

That was a good point, and the thought made Daunte nauseas. He didn't know if he should express his own worry about Archana's health or to reassure Surya that everything would be all right. He even debated remaining quiet. Finally he said, "Surya, don't worry. She'll be all right. I still have a _Howl_ spell left, so I'll cast it over all of us, and then you can add _Kindness Drops_ to it to ensure she fully heals."

Surya nodded jerkily. "…All right. Let's cast these spells. With any luck she'll be all right."

"I believe she'll be all right," Israfil said. His tone didn't falter once.

Surya reached out and grabbed his shoulder. "General, thank you for your help."

"It was nothing."

" _Howl_ ," Daunte called softly. The True Rune's symbol glowed in the air and it reinvigorated the group, including Archana. The spell barely finished though before Surya held his Water Rune over Archana. " _Kindness Drops_."

The two healing spells healed the remaining burns on Archana's head. She didn't stir from her slumber, but her breathing was even. Surya sighed heavily, clearly disappointed, but he shook his head. "I'll worry about whether she'll regain consciousness or not when we get back to the Liberation Army headquarters." He held out his hands to Israfil. "Allow me, General."

"Yes, my Prince." Israfil gave Archana to Surya, who hoisted his cousin up into his arms. "Gunther, do you still have that escape scroll?"

"Ready to go," Gunther said, pulling the scroll out of his pocket. "But don't you have to go get your weapons from over there?" he gestured to the platform.

"I'll get then!" Roen volunteered. He ran down the length of the slush gate to get to the platform.

"Guys, get ready to go!" Surya announced. Mokuren helped to adjust Archana's head more comfortably against his shoulder. "Once Roen gets my tri-nunchaku and the General's sword, we're leaving!"

Daunte stood up, but a hand caught his shoulder. He turned to look at Israfil. "Sir Daunte, thank you for saving Lady Archana. I won't forget this."

Daunte shook his head. "I didn't know if it would work, but I wanted to try anything."

"And I appreciate it." Israfil looked down at his clenched fist. "May I?"

It took Daunte a moment to realize that he was talking about the Exploding Rune crystal. "Sure." He set the Rune in Israfil's outstretched hand and wiped at his palm to make sure all the pieces of the crystals fell to the ground. As he walked away to join the others in using the escape scroll, he heard Israfil crush the remains of the Exploding Rune in his fist.

* * *

Takefute was looking over a scroll, walking down a hallway in the Grand Citadel when he felt a presence behind him. "You have a problem."

He came to a stop and turned to face the woman behind him. "Is that so?"

"The boy is getting better at using the Rune of Restoration," she told him darkly. "Not only did he utilize the power of the Rune to destroy my Exploding Rune, but he also used the Rune to purify some of the contaminated water in the Great Cistern."

"Oh, he purified the water?" Takefute asked lightly. "I guess we should thank him, then."

"He has also successfully rescued four royals," she shot back. "You only have two princesses left in custody, and they know where one of them is."

"But only one of those princess's truly matters," Takefute reminded her. "They will never get to Princess Farrin."

She folded her arms over her chest and huffed. "This foolhardy plan of yours is going awry. With four royals already rescued, do you honestly think Queen Lymsleia will hand over the Sun Rune to you in exchange for their return?"

"This "foolhardy plan" is over _ten years_ in the making," Takefute reminded her.

"And it's taken just over ten _days_ for it to completely unravel. You've become too greedy, Takefute. You want to utilize the offensive power of the Sun Rune and have the defensive power of the Rune of Restoration. Two powers you know very little about."

"Maybe I _am_ greedy," Takefute replied. "But _you're_ greedy too, my Lady. Otherwise, you wouldn't be here in the first place."

She visible twitched, and her blue eyes glared at him. "I came here because we have the same goals. We are working towards that same goal. But I warned you at the beginning of this that kidnapping the entire royal family had a great likelihood of backfiring. It is backfiring, Takefute, and even more serious is the fact that the Rune of Restoration chose that boy, and it will not leave him. Not even with a verbal command of its host."

Takefute shook his head and snapped the scroll shut. "I should've killed him when I had the chance. He _is_ Phoebe's son, after all. I should've known he would be as troublesome as she was."

"There is still time to get it away from him and salvage your little hostage plot," she continued. "For though he's getting better at using the Rune, he's only unlocked one spell. And these little _miracles_ he's performed—the water purification and destroying a very powerful rune—were inadvertent actions. He still has no idea what the Rune is or what its true power is."

"That makes him even more dangerous."

"Yes. But that still makes him an easy target."

Takefute waved a hand. "It ultimately doesn't matter. Whether or not we succeed in getting the Sun Rune doesn't mean we failed. It is clear to see that Bearyl Lutis is providing the bare minimum help to the Falenan royals. Queen Lymsleia will not forget this insult, and thus it ensures that Falena will not align with the Liberation Army. It's laughable that Lutis honestly thought he could reform the might of the original Liberation Army in his image."

"The original Liberation Army of Nagarea did pose a threat," the Matron said. "But now it is gone. The new one does not pose a threat to us…but we must still be vigilant. The Rune of Restoration chose that boy for some reason, and if we don't see to him soon then his power will grow—as will his influence."

Takefute barked out a laugh. "What kind of influence can a _teenage boy_ invoke compared to our might?!"

"You'd be surprised," she responded softly.


	11. Chapter One: Part Eleven

The poll for the Chiyu Star is officially closed. The results of the poll are as follows:

Richmond (Suikoden II): 0

Kidd (Suikoden III): 0

 **Oboro (Suikoden V): 3**

New Character: 2

The Chiyu Star will be introduced next week. Thanks to everyone who participated in the poll!

* * *

Part Eleven

They had spent all day fighting in the Great Cistern, so by the time they used the escape scroll to make it outside, night had already fallen. No words were spoken within the group as they readied their horses. Surya accepted Archana into his arms. Not once did the princess stir.

"I wish we had some way to immediately get back to the headquarters," Roen complained softly. "That way we could find out right away if she was okay."

Daunte wished the same thing, but he knew it was impossible. All they could do was steer their horses back home. And predictably, the trek home proved to be even more bothersome because more monsters were roaming the plains at night. None of them were in any mood to dawdle on random fights. If they couldn't simply run out on a battle then they made short, messy work of their foes.

It was even deeper into the night when they arrived back. There was almost no light coming from the castle, and even the guards on duty looked ready to fall asleep where they stood.

They tied their horses and began to dismount. Before Surya could do so however, Israfil was at his horse's side. "Prince, please allow me to carry her Ladyship from here on out."

"Thank you, General," Surya said, carefully lowering his cousin into Israfil's waiting arms. Then he swung out of his own saddle. "Dr. Clara is probably not awake, but we should definitely take Archana to the infirmary. I also want to see how Kaylani is."

"I'll speak with Lord Bearyl about sending scouts to Kõrkus," Gunther said. "Since Princess Archana announced the other princess's whereabouts in front of that crazy woman, she might be moved as well."

"They probably won't take her far though," Roen said. "Unlike the other Sheikh, Keha Hale's Garrison isn't a separate entity. It's integrated into Kõrkus. What they'll most likely do is move Princess Signe directly into the Garrison itself—it she wasn't there already."

"Right," Gunther said, his tone still quite grim.

The main hall was still quiet. Gunther broke away from the party to head upstairs to meet with Bearyl Lutis, while the rest headed down to the infirmary. Daunte was relieved to see Clara's note gone from the door, but even before they reached the door a sound emitted from the other side that caused them all to stop in their tracks.

It was the sound of a baby crying.

Surya gasped, and took off running towards the infirmary. The rest followed him as the prince burst inside. "Kaylani!"

Daunte followed inside. His eyes first found Arin and he saw that his little brother was wide awake. The child looked like he'd just woken up, but he didn't look annoyed. Daunte went to sit at his bedside as the others went over to Kaylani. Freyr was sitting on the empty bed beside Kaylani's, watching her anxiously.

"My Lady, are you all right?" Mokuren said softly. Kaylani was lying in a hospital bed, and Silvano was sitting at her bedside gently snuggling a bundle in his arms. Kaylani looked exhausted, but she definitely looked in better shape than Daunte expected.

The princess laughed softly. "The doctor used a Flowing Rune on us both, so I'm quite fine. Here." She reached for her husband and gently pulled the blanket away, revealing the puffy, reddened face of a newborn child. "Say hello to our son."

Silvano carefully set the baby in her arms as everyone leaned in to get a look. "He's _adorable_!" Mokuren squealed. "And it's a boy?"

"Yes," Silvano said, reaching out to touch the baby on the head. His hand was so much bigger by comparison that it looked ready to swallow the baby up. "A healthy boy with a healthy weight."

"Your Highness, if you would excuse me," Israfil said softly to Freyr. The boy obligingly got out of the way and Israfil carefully laid Archana out on the bed.

"A-Archana!" Kaylani cried out, sitting up. The sudden shout and motion woke the baby and he started crying again. Silvano hastily took the baby out of her arms. "What happened to my sister?!"

"She suffered a terrible ordeal, my Lady," Israfil said. He carefully pulled back the sheets and tucked Archana in. "She was tortured with a barbaric Rune by a vicious witch."

Kaylani left the bed, although she nearly tumbled over as she knelt by Archana's bedside. "Archana? Archana, can you hear me?" She looked up at Israfil. "You said she was tortured with a _Rune_?"

"It nearly killed her," Surya admitted grimly. "The only reason it didn't was because of the General, and Daunte."

"You give me too much credit, Prince Surya. I did nothing. It was all Sir Daunte." Israfil motioned to him. "The only reason Lady Archana survived was because of him."

"Guys," Silvano said, setting the baby in a nearby hospital crib. "Kaylani's been through enough. Can you please spare us the details until another time?" he walked around the bed to help Kaylani back into it.

"No, I'm glad they told me," Kaylani said, though she allowed him to tuck her back in. She glanced over at Daunte. "Thank you for saving my sister, Daunte. My family is indebted to you. I swear I'll repay you somehow, and if I'm not able to I know my father will."

Daunte swallowed thickly and looked away. He didn't feel like they owed him _anything_ because he didn't save her to curry favor. He knew he could just accept the thanks, speak his mind, or even be sarcastically pompous about it. After a moment he looked back at Kaylani. "Your family owes me nothing. I saved Lady Archana because it was the right thing to do. That's all."

Her eyes were shining, but she was smiling and she nodded. "All right. But we won't forget this."

"How long has she been like this?" Freyr asked, gesturing to Archana. He was clearly distressed by her current condition.

"Several hours now," Surya said. "Since that witch tried to fully activate the Rune. Daunte overpowered and destroyed the Rune, and we both healed her with healing spells. But she's probably exhausted in mind and body from her ordeal. Who knows how long she was left standing down there with that damned thing attached to her head?"

"She's undoubtedly been through a lot," Israfil agreed. He took a seat beside Archana's bed. "We shouldn't worry until the doctor examines her."

"Right," Kaylani breathed. She looked at her sister for a long moment before turning to Silvano. "She'll be all right. She still has to meet her nephew after all."

"Archana also gave us important information," Surya said. "She found out where Signe is."

"Signe?!" Freyr snapped to attention at hearing his sister's name. He looked at Surya. "Wherever she is, I'm going with you!"

"Freyr—"

"They gave me the weapons I need." Freyr turned around and Daunte noticed for the first time dual butterfly swords strapped to his back. "And while you were gone I did some chores and earned enough money to get my own forged identification book. I'm not letting you leave me behind this time!"

 _He's very determined, isn't he?_ Daunte thought dryly. He glanced at Arin. _Then again, I'm practically in the same situation as him._

"We'll discuss this later," Surya said with exasperation. "In the meantime I want to go and check with Lord Bearyl about the current situation. Kaylani, I'm glad to see that you're all right, and your baby as well."

"Thank you, Surya."

"Prince." Israfil stood to attention. "I made a pledge to the Queen, but—"

"It's fine," Surya said, waving a hand. "It's all right if you stay here to watch over Archana."

"We've both been running nonstop since we arrived in Nagarea," Silvano added. "It wouldn't hurt for you to stay in one place for a little while, Israfil."

"Thank you, Prince." Israfil bowed before sitting back down.

"I'm still going with you," Freyr said defiantly. "And I won't listen to any excuses."

Daunte left the room first, so Surya wouldn't see his smile of amusement at Freyr's defiance.

* * *

They climbed up the stairs towards the second floor when a new shout caused them to pause. "Hey, guys!"

"Oh, Felicity!" Roen called back, waving as their friend raced up the stairs to them. "Are you feeling better?"

"I slept all day," Felicity laughed a little. "And I heard you rescued the other princess. Good job."

"I'm glad to see you're doing better," Daunte said. "Considering…"

Felicity made a face and shook her head. "I'm _never_ having a baby. I've seen some crazy things in my life, but that was…" she shuddered. "I can't put myself through that same experience."

"We're going up to see Lord Bearyl," Roen said. "We've found out where another princess is, so we're going to find out if she's still there."

"Really? Where is she?"

"Kõrkus," Surya supplied. "But Archana announced Signe's whereabouts in front of the Matron, so Signe might be moved. With any luck she'll still be there."

They finished their trek up to the war room, and Daunte pushed open the double doors without knocking. "—still there?"Daunte heard as they entered. At the back of the room he saw Gunther standing at the table speaking with Bearyl and Caesar. Lorik Varra was on the other side of the table, looking down at a placeholder. Daunte moved closer and saw a giant map of Nagarea stretched across the table, and the placeholder in question was due south of the High Peak Mountains, which was the furthest northwest point in Nagarea. Allise was standing off to one side leaning against the wall.

"That's what it looks like," Caesar replied. He saw Daunte and the others come in and gave them a sheepish smile. "Oh, hello. Good news, everyone. While it looks like Kõrkus has tightened their security, it doesn't look like Princess Signe was taken elsewhere."

"So she should still be there?" Freyr asked hopefully.

"Correct," Bearyl said. Daunte noticed that the Commander seemed to be in a rather cheerful mood, despite the fact that he'd appeared to be inconvenienced by the Falenans and their problems. He gestured to the placeholder Lorik had been eyeing. "We've had our hands full with our operations, but our most recent campaign was successful. Just last night Lord Lorik was able to secure the town of _Zinnia_ last night from Sheik Faakhir's control."

"The Sheikh has not retaliated yet," Lorik said softly. "But we will need to be ready for when he does."

Daunte looked between the two of them, and suddenly spoke before he could stop himself. "Will you not be able to assist us, Lord Bearyl?"

"I _am_ assisting you all," Bearyl said defensively, looking back at them. "But as you can see, we must focus our efforts on making sure Zinnia remains under our control. We've sent word to our scouts in Kõrkus and they replied with the necessary information. Do with it as you will."

"We will go to Kõrkus and rescue my cousin," Surya retorted. "Myself, Mokuren, and…anyone else who might assist us." He ignored the scowl Freyr gave him. "I request that Daunte also accompany us. He saved Archana's life in the Great Cistern, using the power of his True Rune. He has proven invaluable and we appreciate his help."

"Is that so?" Bearyl asked. Daunte was also surprised. He still didn't have complete control over his True Rune, and everything that he'd done with it— _including_ saving Archana—were all just flukes. Yet Surya still wanted his assistance?

"I'm very happy to hear that you're getting better at using the True Rune," Caesar said, looking at Daunte. "True Runes are rather _picky_ with their owners, and those that are deemed unworthy of the power lose control of the Rune. Gunther told us how you purified contaminated water in the Great Cistern. Whatever the true purpose of that Rune is, you seem to be using its power wisely."

"I'm also glad that you're maintaining control of the Rune," Bearyl added. Daunte could've been mistaken, but it sounded like there was a…edge to his voice. "I look forward to seeing you wield its power in the name of the Liberation Army."

"I would also like to accompany them," Gunther said. "My Lord," he quickly added when Bearyl tried to object. "I humbly request your permission to continue assisting the Falenan royal family in this matter." He bowed to him.

"Given that the lieutenant has already provided much assistance in this matter, I don't see the harm in letting him go," Caesar said softly.

"…All right," Bearyl said. But he was glaring sternly at Gunther. "Your assistance was most needed in securing Zinnia, Gunther. Your absence was most unwelcome."

"I understand, sir," Gunther replied, but Daunte quickly frowned. _What a minute. He suspended Gunther and then reinstated him so Gunther could help us in the Great Cistern. If he wanted to use Gunther for their campaign on Zinnia, then why let him go with us in the first place?!_

"I think I will accompany you all as well."

Daunte started slightly as Allise casually approached them. She gave them a friendly smile. "It's been a few years since I was at Kõrkus. So why not make a visit?"

"Allise, is that a good idea?" Gunther interjected suddenly. "Do you really want to go back there?"

"I wouldn't have volunteered if I wasn't serious."

"What's wrong with Kõrkus?" Roen asked.

"Nothing is wrong with Kõrkus," Allise told him. "But my ex-husband lives there and he's quite…possessive."

"Ex-husband?" Felicity echoed. Daunte was also surprised. Allise looked even younger than Kaylani, though older than himself. And she'd already been married? And divorced?

"Which is why I don't think you should endanger yourself like this," Gunther told her. "We know what he's capable of!"

"I'll be fine, Gunther." She broadened her smile at him. "Promise."

"…Wait," Roen said. His tone had turned ominous and he suddenly pointed at Allise. His eyes went wide. "You?! It's _you_?!"

"What's wrong, Roen?" Daunte asked him.

"I'd heard the stories," Roen said, not hearing Daunte. "Everybody has in Kõrkus. You are…you're his wife?!"

"I was," Allise said.

" _Whose_ wife?" Surya asked, almost unable to help himself.

"The Sheikh's," Roen gasped. "Keha Hale's wife."

Daunte's jaw dropped and he looked at Allise. She was a woman obviously in her twenties. But Keha Hale…from what he'd heard, the man was in his _fifties_. He had to be at the very least thirty years _older_ than her! And he was Allise's ex-husband?!

 _O-Oh Nagar. Does this mean they got married when she was a_ _ **teenager**_ _? Maybe even my age!_ Daunte dry-heaved a little at the thought.

"It's a long, horrific story," Allise said casually. "One I'd rather not share again. But we have nothing to worry about. Our scouts have already notified us that my ex is not at Kõrkus at the moment so we should have no problem sneaking in there and rescuing the princess. Besides, I'm quite familiar of the layout of his Garrison. I have a couple of ideas of where he stashed Princess Signe away to, so I think you'll benefit greatly from my help." She held out a hand to Daunte. "So, what do you say?"

Daunte looked at her. She still hung onto her smile, despite how dark her words were. Once again his eyes caught the Rune in the center of her forehead, and he couldn't help but be curious about its powers.

 _She'll also be very helpful with getting into the Garrison, since she use to live there._

"I'm glad to be working for you, Lady Allise," Daunte said, accepting her handshake.

"Allise is fine," Allise said. "I would rather not have a title attached to my name."

"I'm not exactly eager to return to Kõrkus," Roen said. "But I would be happy to keep helping out."

"Me too," Felicity said.

"Don't forget me," Freyr added.

"Wait a moment," Bearyl interjected. He walked around the table towards them. "You shouldn't have too many people going with you when you infiltrate Kõrkus. You'll garner a lot more attention than intended, and with the Garrison integrated into the town you'll be dealing with seasonally trained soldiers and not just city guards."

"I agree," Caesar said. "Thus far you've been very successful at rescuing royals with a six-member party. I would recommend sticking with the six-member party in this."

"Why not a four-member party?" Lorik asked. "It's a smaller group but when organized properly you can have a very concise unit."

"Four members?" Caesar barked out a laugh. "Believe me when I say that six is better than four!"

"Lord Bearyl has a point," Surya said, turning to Daunte. "We're already pushing our luck with six people, we shouldn't bring any more. However it also looks like we have a greater picking of people than we did previously. I must go on this journey."

"And I must stay by my prince's side," Mokuren added.

"I must insist that you absolutely take me along as well," Allise said. "Otherwise, you might not get far in Kõrkus."

"So that leaves two people that can either stay or go," Felicity mused aloud. "What do you think, Daunte?"

Daunte looked around at the people in the room. He wondered why this suddenly became _his_ decision and not Surya's, but everyone had automatically turned to him expectantly. He looked at his two best friends, looked at Freyr, and looked at Gunther. This _was_ a difficult decision to make!

 _I'll need to plan this practically. Gunther is skilled with a sword, Roen is very proficient at using his Fire Rune, and Felicity has that Kite Rune which will allow her to hit every target with her knives. I don't know Freyr's capabilities but if he can wield dual butterfly swords even at the age of fourteen, then I know he's a pretty formidable fighter._

He gave it a lot of thought before he decided on his first person. "Gunther."

"All right, let's do this!" Gunther cheered. He casually threw an arm around Allise. "I will protect you with my life, my Lady!"

Allise casually shrugged his arm off her shoulders. "No need, Gunther."

"And…" Daunte floundered as he tried to decide. Finally his gaze settled on his second choice. "Prince Freyr."

Freyr cheered and pumped his fists. "I'm ready whenever you are!"

"I don't feel comfortable taking Freyr with us," Surya said, shrugging. "But…I won't argue."

"Aww, I was hoping to leave headquarters for a little while," Felicity complained, but her tone was playful as she stretched her arms over her head.

Roen shook his head. "Kõrkus is my hometown but…I'm glad I'm not going back there. I haven't been back since my dad…"

"I have a Wind Rune," Freyr supplied, showing Daunte his left hand. Daunte saw a pale blue cyclic symbol on the back of his hand. "I was able to unlock a status effect spell _and_ an offensive spell!"

 _That's one more spell than mine,_ Daunte said dryly.

"Now that we've decided," Surya said. "Let's head out right away. Where is Kõrkus?"

"It's in the southwest provinces," Gunther said. "The capital of the southwest provinces, to be precise. We can transverse Winter Hill and cut our travel time in half, or walk all the way around it."

"It sounds like it'll take some time to reach Kõrkus."

"With the shortcut it should take us two or three day's tops," Allise said. "I don't believe they'll move the princess out of the city during that time, but we should get some rest tonight and head out first thing tomorrow morning."

"We have a traveling merchant temporarily staying with us," Bearyl said. "He's sleeping in a tent out front. We've been trying to get him to stay on with us full-time, but thus far he's been resistant to the idea. But you can replenish your supplies with him."

"I hope the Sheikh hasn't done anything to hurt Signe," Freyr said softly.

"I wish I could offer you reassurances, but that man isn't…kind by nature," Allise told him. "But he wouldn't be stupid enough to hurt a valuable hostage."

Daunte wasn't so optimistic considering what the Holy Army did to Archana, but he said nothing.

* * *

Daunte was up before dawn the next morning and quickly went to the infirmary to see Arin. The infirmary itself was silent. Archana was still unmoving from her bed, and Israfil was slumped over in the seat beside it fast asleep. Silvano was curled up beside Kaylani in her bed. Unable to help himself, Daunte looked in on their baby's crib. The babe was curled up on his side also fast asleep.

Arin was still asleep, and Daunte felt his forehead. His fever was completely gone, the color had returned to his face, and his breathing was steady and clear.

 _It looks like the worst of it is over._

The relief overwhelmed Daunte and he had to sit down on the bed because his knees were unsteady. Tears stung his eyes and he pressed a hand to his mouth. He'd spent so long frightened for his little brother's condition and hoping against the odds that the child would get better.

Now he was better. The burden abruptly dislodged from Daunte and he felt light-headed. _He's better. He's truly going to be all right._

"The worst of his illness has passed."

Daunte looked up and saw Clara. The young doctor checked in on the baby and then moved to Archana's bedside. "He's still very weak and malnourished. He's small for a boy his age, but there's no worry. Once he gets some proper food in his belly and becomes more physically active, he'll catch up."

Daunte stood up from the bed and bowed. "I'll never be able to thank you enough for this."

"No, don't worry about it. I'm a doctor, and it's my duty to care for people." Clara leaned over Archana and checked her pulse. Her face was expressionless, but that didn't help Daunte's anxiety when she finished. "I-Is Lady Archana okay?"

"I understand that an unstable Rune was attached to her forehead and it nearly exploded," Clara said softly. "Prince Surya was concerned about brain damage, and I don't blame him. Having a Rune attached to your forehead can be risky, because there's a greater chance of mind effects if you cannot control its power. Thus far though I've found no evidence of such. She isn't comatose, just severely fatigued. The best thing we can do for her right now is to let her rest, and to not put any more stress upon her."

Daunte nodded. "Good." Out of the corner of his eye he noticed Arin stirring and knelt beside the bed. "Arin?"

The boy's eyes fluttered briefly before opening completely. He broke out into a smile when he saw Daunte, and effortlessly pushed himself into a sitting position. "Good morning, Brother."

"How do you feel?" Daunte asked him.

" _Much_ better," Arin replied, grinning. "I can't wait to get out of bed!"

"It won't be too long," Clara told him. "You just need to regain your strength and you'll be better in no time."

Arin gestured to Daunte to lean in close, and Arin cupped his hands around his mouth to whisper. "The princess is really pretty. She looks like the princess in those books Mom would read to us!"

Daunte's breath hitched, and he looked at his brother. They'd been sentenced to the Dark Chasm three years ago, and it was three years ago when they lost their parents. Arin had been six years old then, and even though he'd been technically too _young_ for the Dark Chasm the Original Sin Decree declared that the severity of their parents "treason" was such that Arin _needed_ to suffer the Dark Chasm to be redeemed.

But Arin had still been very young when they lost their parents. Even Daunte couldn't remember his mother's face. So it was very surprising that Arin could remember the stories their mother told them.

 _Well, he hasn't had very happy memories. It's no wonder he's hung onto what few happy memories he's experienced._

"Speaking of stories," Daunte said, reaching into his bag. "I found a couple of books while out on the road. This one's really old and really thick, so you might not like it." He set the old green book at Arin's bedside. "But this one's much shorter." He pulled out _Beauty and the Beast_ , and flipped open a couple of the short pages. "I flipped through it when we took a break on the road last night, and it looks like a _play_ of some sorts. It also sounds like the stories Mom would read to us. Would you like to read it, Arin?"

Arin looked down at _Beauty and the Beast_ for a long moment before looking at Daunte with confusion. "I-I don't know how to read."

Daunte's stomach twisted painfully and he sucked in a sharp breath. He felt like the world's biggest idiot. "I-I'm sorry, Arin. When I finish finding Surya's cousins I promise I'll teach you how to read."

Arin smiled brightly at him. "Thanks, Daunte!"

Daunte felt horrible on the inside. Of _course_ Arin didn't know how to read! Especially considering he'd been working in a labor mine since he was six! How could he have forgotten something like that?!

Thankfully his thoughts were interrupted when the infirmary door opened and Felicity came inside. "I knew I would find you here, Daunte. The others are looking for you upstairs."

"Right." Daunte gave Arin a quick hug and stood up. "I'll see you when you get back."

Arin nodded. "Be careful, Brother."

Felicity gave Daunte a smile as she entered the infirmary as he was leaving. As Daunte closed the door, he heard Felicity exclaim, " _Beauty and the Beast_? I love this story!"

Daunte headed back upstairs. The main hall was still inhabited by the same people he'd always seen there, but this time they each had something different to say.

"The little baby prince is so adorable! But his ears don't quite look elven. Will he grow into them?"

"Am I the only person _not_ excited about our annexing Zinnia? Sloan Faakhir will launch a campaign to reclaim it, and Lorik Varra isn't a warrior like Faakhir is!"

"I'm glad we're doing some good by the Falenan royal family, but their presence here is interfering with Army work. It seems to be causing Lord Bearyl a lot of stress."

"Do you want to know a secret?"

"…Yes?" Daunte replied.

"Allise was the wife of Sheikh Keha Hale."

 _I know that._

"But do you know how Allise ended up with the Liberation Army? Two years ago our Army kidnapped her in order to open negotiations with the Sheikh over the return of Army soldiers. But to our surprise she immediately turned on the Sheikh, joined our ranks, and even helped us devise a way to rescue the imprisoned soldiers! It was very surprising that she turned on her husband so quickly. It almost seemed too good to be true. But Allise proved herself countless times that she's devoted to our cause. She must have been very unhappy in her marriage to the Sheikh if she turned on him like that. Rumor has it that she was kidnapped so easily because she snuck off to get a quiet divorce from the Sheikh in the Grand Citadel. Surprisingly they honored her petition, even without Hale present."

This conversation caused the wheels in Daunte's mind to turn. _So Allise came to the Liberation Army two years ago. She was married to Keha Hale before that, and…didn't she say she was also sentenced to the Dark Chasm? So Keha Hale married someone who by religious law was tainted by sin? This sounds very bizarre._

He didn't see the group inside, so he went outside. Sure enough he saw them down the stairs speaking with a man standing beside a flashy cart. The man looked to be in his early forties and he was dressed in a dark red sherwani with black pants, and he had a dark red bycocket covering his head. Even with the hat though Daunte could see he had short brown hair that was gradually turning white.

"—thanks again," Gunther said as Daunte approached. He looked over his shoulder at Daunte and waved him over. "Hey, come and check out his wares!"

"Hello, young man!" the merchant smiled at Daunte. Daunte could see deep stress lines in his face. "I am Cairoh, and I am a traveling merchant. I operate my business from this unofficial cart."

"Unofficial?" Daunte echoed.

"He lost his merchant's license," Allise explained to him. "So technically it's illegal for him to be selling anything."

"Which is why I stay on the move," Cairoh said. He suddenly frowned and fury filled his dark eyes. "It's that blasted Merchant's Pledge, though! Twenty-five years ago the Pledge only had twenty parts! Now it's at _seventy-eight_! This past year, without an official announcement, they added four more lines to the Pledge! It was no wonder I lost my license when I didn't receive an updated Pledge!"

 _They added four more parts to the Pledge this past year? But didn't Gusoku manage to hang onto his license despite this? And other merchants were able to hang onto their licenses. This man…doesn't seem very attentive, does he?_

"Why don't you join us?" Gunther offered. "We could use a merchant, and I'm fairly certain our Commander would revoke the Merchant's Pledge once we win our rebellion."

But Cairoh shook his head. "For the time being I feel more comfortable staying on the move. I'm thinking of setting up shop temporarily in Winter Hill, but all of you are welcome to my wares before I leave."

Daunte _was_ impressive by his products, and made sure to stock up on healing herbs and even an extra rune scroll. He also made sure to grab an escape scroll, just in case he ended up in a massive place like the Great Cistern again and didn't want to walk all the way out.

"I also have some rare finds," Cairoh said. He pulled back a tan colored drape to reveal a shelf in the wagon. "They cost more money, but they're less common than any of my other products."

Daunte saw a couple of amulets on the shelf, but he frowned deeply at their prices. They were tens of thousands of bits. Rare as they might be, he didn't know if buying even one amulet was worth the risk of losing all his bits.

But…but then he saw something interesting. The cheapest item in the rare finds shelf was an old, thick book with a crimson hard cover. He picked it up and flipped through it. The spine crackled, and the pages smelled of must. But Daunte couldn't help but be intrigued.

"That's 7,000 bits," Cairoh told him.

"Deal," Daunte said, counting out the money. He didn't know what compelled him to get the book, but he had a feeling it would be useful to him.

"If we're ready, let's get going," Surya said.

"If you want to do business with me again, look for me at Winter Hill," Cairoh told them. "I'll be making camp at this plateau I'm familiar with near the western entrance."

"Thank you," Daunte said.

The group loaded up their horses and took off. Daunte had never been to Kõrkus before and so he allowed both Allise and Gunther to take the lead. As they rode, Daunte observed Gunther repeatedly making passes at Allise and complimenting her. Allise greeted his words with indifference and even polite scorn. Surprisingly Gunther didn't seem to take the hint, and kept trying to maintain her attention.

 _Gunther seems to have a reputation with women. Allise obviously is aware of this. But I'm kind of surprised to see him go through the effort of winning her over, when she's not responding to him positively._

They left the plains and entered Winter Hill. Daunte knew they were in Winter Hill because of the color of the grass. While elsewhere it had a faded green color, in Winter Hill the vegetation thrived and the grass was dark green. The beautiful scenery expanded for kilometers around them, peppered with hills and plateaus. There was no path on the ground, but the ground had been marked with wagon wheels and footprints in various directions.

Being back in Winter Hill made Daunte feel nostalgic, but it also made him apprehensive.

 _We just have to steer away from Mlkwt Alsmwat, we hopefully won't run into too many problems._

Not long after thinking this though, they ran into a complicated monster. It was a gray boar, much larger than their horses. Bright blue eyes and bloodstained tusks sticking out of its mouth, it charged at them from behind a plateau. The beast spooked the horses and had them scrambling briefly to get into formation. Daunte was surprised to see Allise take the front. She yanked what looked like two folded up silver fans from her waistband and whipped them open. He noticed the fans themselves reflected sunlight and looked smooth, like the sharp end of a blade.

 _Those are tessen!_

Despite its large size, the boar was quick on its feet and kept charging at them. They struck at the monster and used their Runes (and Daunte was very surprised to see how capable a fighter Freyr was) and the monster bled heavily, but it still wouldn't give up. It still kept charging at them.

After several minutes of fighting Allise suddenly shouted, "Get behind me!"

Daunte was confused, but he saw Gunther immediately dive behind her and the rest of them scrambled. As the beast turned toward them, Allise spread out her arms. " _Open Gate_."

What happened next shook Daunte to the core. The entire area became engulfed in darkness—it was like the sun was no longer in the sky. The ground began trembling violently, and he could no longer maintain his balance. He saw the ground open up in front of Allise and a massive body emerged, but Daunte could no longer remain standing and collapsed.

As he struggled back to his feet, a hideous roar filled the air and he suddenly felt scorched as the world around him became engulfed in fire. Instinctively he covered his head, remembering the feeling of being set on fire and not wanting to relive it, and just as suddenly the air filled with smoke…and the giant boar roared in pain.

Just as abruptly though, the darkness faded and the world around them returned to normal. Daunte hesitantly looked up and saw that all but Gunther had been similarly affected by the spell. He looked back over to Allise, and the young woman turned to them with a smile. "The beast has been defeated."

Indeed, there was nothing left of the boar except a charred carcass that was still on fire. "W-What was _that_?!" Freyr sputtered.

Allise pointed to the symbol on her forehead. "The Blue Gate Rune, also known as the Pale Gate Rune."

"I-I've heard of that," Surya said, brushing himself off. "It's a Rune that can summon creatures from another dimension."

"That power is _incredible_ ," Mokuren said softly, though she looked a little fearful.

"It's been a while since I've seen you use that Rune," Gunther said. He smiled at Allise. "Good job."

"All I did was summon a beast to fight the battle for me," Allise said simply. She looked at Daunte. "Let's be on our way, shall we?"

… _I wonder if that Rune is another big reason Bearyl recruited her?_ Daunte wondered.

* * *

It took just over a day to venture through Winter Hill towards their destination. They saw the odd traveler and several monsters, but their trip was mostly without difficulty. Daunte kept his eyes open for Cairoh and his cart, but didn't see the rogue merchant anywhere. It was disappointing, but it helped him to keep an eye on his supplies.

After leaving Winter Hill, it took nearly two days to reach Kõrkus. The closer they got to the fortified city, the tenser Allise was becoming. She had been very nonchalant about returning to Kõrkus, but even Daunte could see that she was clearly on edge. Gunther similarly noticed this too and said something to her that Daunte couldn't hear. Allise responded with a quick, "I'm fine."

When the city came into sight, Daunte stiffened. He saw Keha Hale's Garrison first, as the massive fortress sat atop a hill overlooking the twenty-three thousand residents of the city. He gulped audibly and looked at the others. _There's no doubt Princess Signe is in that fortress. And there is no doubt they are expecting us._

"Lady Allise," Surya said suddenly.

"Yes, Prince?" Allise asked over her shoulder.

"Is it really a good idea for you to be here? I mean no offense to you, but what if the guards recognize you?"

"They will not," Allise reassured him. "It's been over two years since I've been in Kõrkus. Besides, the common soldiers at the gate will not recognize me because they've never really seen me."

"Is that so?"

"Well considering I was forbidden to leave the Garrison without that man by my side—and I was always covered up when I did leave—I imagine not even the residents of Kõrkus will recognize me."

Her tone was still nonchalant, but Daunte was unnerved by her story. _She was forbidden to leave her own house? But—that makes sense. Roen_ _ **knew**_ _that the Sheikh had been married, but not even he recognized Allise when he first met her. He'd mentioned hearing "stories" about Allise, though…what kind of stories? I wished I'd asked him before I left._

As they approached the gates, they were quickly approached by a guard. Daunte was surprised to see a teenaged boy around his own age greeting them. The boy was dressed in the silver robes marking a soldier, but he had dark golden eyes that looked at each of them unwaveringly. Rusty red bangs peeked out from behind his hood as he gestured to them. "Your identification books, please."

The group handed over their forged books without question. The young man took the time to read each book individually, and looked at each person in kind. His scrutiny made Daunte a little nervous, as none of the other guards had ever paid this much attention before.

He finished checking the books and raised his head. "What is the fortieth proverb of _'Splendor'_?"

Daunte gaped at him. He knew that _'Splendor'_ was a chapter in the Scriptures that listed proverbs. Except that there were over two _hundred_ proverbs in that chapter and Daunte didn't even know _one_ of them! How were they supposed to get out of this one?!

"Young man," Allise said, steering her horse towards him. "The fortieth proverb of _Splendor_ is such: _'For though the blood of heretics may taint this world, spilling it will purge the world and make it pure'_."

"That is correct!" the young man's eyes lit up and he enthusiastically handed them back their identifications books. "Welcome to Kõrkus, my fellow believers! My name is Brennus, and rest assured you will all be well-protected within our walls!"

"Thank you," Allise said, bowing.

They were allowed through and guided their horses to a giant stable nearby to tie them up. Allise turned to them after the coast was clear. "I'm sorry, I forgot about that. Kõrkus prides itself on religious knowledge, so guards and Clerics like quizzing people about passages in the Scriptures."

"You could've warned us _earlier_ ," Surya said hotly.

"I honestly forgot, I'm sorry."

"But it's good that you knew the answer so quickly," Freyr said.

Allise smiled at him. "Being a Believer, and the ex-wife of a Sheikh, will grant me more knowledge than most." Daunte saw the strain in her smile though and looked away.

The city proper was similar to Tenaga, but Daunte didn't relax once. With the Sheikh's Garrison in town, there were groups of two to three guards on patrol down every street. The entrance to every shop a guard stood on watch. Daunte felt too exposed with so much security but he tried to look as unassuming as possible.

Surprisingly though, the residents of Kõrkus didn't seem bothered by the number of soldiers around. They went about their business like nothing was out of the ordinary. And some of the dialogue around them unsettled Daunte too.

"Praise Nagar for everything He provides for us!"

"These are dark times, indeed. So much evil has been exposed by our High Clerics. I didn't realize there were so many sinners and heretics living amongst us faithful!"

"I've heard rumors that they are planning on deploying the missionaries again. We must use our might to spread the word of our faith!"

"I can't get over the splendor of our new Chapel!"

" _I_ can't stand looking at it. I loved the old Chapel. I still can't believe a heathen used the power of a Rage Rune to blow the old Chapel up. We lost so many people that day."

"We did. But the new one is so magnificent too."

It was near impossible to simply wander around and do reconnaissance. At random intervals they were stopped by guards, or even a random citizen, and quizzed about an obscure subjects in the Nagarist Scripture. Some were easy enough for Daunte to answer, but others Allise had to chime in and give an answer. It puzzled him why they were asking such questions. And what would happen if they got any wrong?

"A trading stall," Allise observed, pointing to a stand with a sign over it. The sign showed the image of a balance.

"We don't have a trader at the headquarters," Gunther reminded her.

Allise shrugged. "Trading always brings in easy money." She walked over to the stall, and the groups followed.

"Welcome, welcome!" the tradesman greeted them. "How may I help you today?"

"Any news regarding the trade?" Allise asked him.

"The price of sugar is on the decline. I'm selling it for 5 bits!"

"Done," Allise said, pulling out her wallet. "I'll take twenty."

Daunte's jaw dropped as Allise paid for her purchase and accepted the twenty bags of sugar. "I'll need to tie these to my horses. I'll be right back."

"What about my cousin?" Surya asked her incredulously.

"Don't worry, I don't believe the princess was sent anywhere else. But if I'm right, by the time we reach the northeast again the price of sugar will skyrocket, and I will be able to sell it for a profit."

 _Is that all there is to trade?_ Daunte wondered.

"Let's hang out over here," Gunther said, gesturing to the empty section of a high wall. "Allise has bailed us out of the harder questions so we just have to draw as little attention to ourselves as possible so we won't get questioned while she's gone."

"I don't like this place," Mokuren said softly, rubbing at her arms. "There's too many soldiers around. I think they're more of them here than in Sol-Falena!"

"It's not surprising," Surya said grimly. "Archana _did_ announce Signe's whereabouts in front of that woman. They have to know we'd be coming."

"And that also means Signe is here," Freyr added.

Daunte glanced at Gunther. The laidback lieutenant was surprisingly on edge, and watching their surroundings closely. "Is everything okay?"

"Hardly," Gunther said. "Granted, what we've experienced here thus far is tame compared to the security in the capital, but I don't like this place." He looked in the direction Allise had disappeared to. "I shouldn't have let her go by herself. Somebody is bound to recognize her."

Daunte didn't want to pry, but he couldn't help himself. "Did the Sheikh treat her terribly? Did you witness any—"

"No," Gunther said. "I never saw the two interact but I've heard the stories. _And_ I was the one who kidnapped her."

"…You did?" Daunte asked.

Gunther nodded stiffly. "I thought I was kidnapping some uptight, spoiled elitist. When I found her, though…" he quickly shook his head. "Never mind. It's best left alone."

The lack of information made Daunte even more uncomfortable and he looked away. _We have to figure out a way to get into the Garrison. It's not like the other towns because those were just mansions. This is a military fortress attached to a town. Maybe it wasn't such a good idea for the six of us to come?_

"I'm actually surprised nobody's recognized us," Freyr said suddenly. He looked down the row at the rest of them. "I mean, don't they have wanted posters of us or something?"

"They do," Gunther said dryly. "But most don't pay attention."

Freyr huffed. "While I'm glad for it, I'm certainly glad these soldiers don't serve in the Falenan Army!"

"Freyr!" Surya hissed warningly.

"Psst!"

Daunte's ears piqued at this familiar sound. As Surya scolded his younger cousin, Daunte craned his ears to hear the call again. After a moment, it came back. "Psst! Boy with the True Rune!"

"True Rune?" Gunther echoed. He fingered the hilt of his sword, but Daunte gestured at him to pause. "It's okay."

"Come here, boy with the True Rune." The call was still soft, but spoken with a compelling voice. But it was still too soft for Daunte to determine the speaker's gender. He drew closer and closer to the wall, looking around for the person. "Where are you?" he called softly.

"Stop."

Daunte and Gunther stopped with this command, and the other notice what they were doing. Daunte held himself still as the other joined them. "What's wrong?" Surya asked.

"I trust you found the princess?" the voice was coming from above them, and Daunte realized the person was on top of the wall. But when he looked up, he didn't see anybody.

"Who is that?" Surya asked him. "How do they know—"

"Yes," Daunte answered the unknown stranger. "Thank you for your help with that."

A soft laugh greeted him. "I wouldn't say what I did was help. You knew already the princess was there. All I did was validate your suspicions."

"It was still helpful."

"And here you are, in the middle of enemy territory once more. I trust you are looking for another princess, yes?"

"How do they know so much?!" Freyr demanded.

"Yes," Daunte confirmed. "But we already know who is here. I have a question for you."

"Go ahead," the stranger replied.

"In Tenaga, you told me you were my ally and that I could trust you to lend me a hand. Is that still true?"

"Of course."

"Then would you do me a favor?"

"Can we trust someone we cannot see?" Gunther asked him.

"I don't think we have a choice otherwise," Surya said grimly.

"What sort of favor do you desire?" the stranger asked. "Whatever the wish, it will come with a price."

"Oh, _really_?!" Surya snapped. "You claim to want to help us, but then you charge us money?!"

"I have to make a living," came the defensive reply.

"Fine," Daunte said. "Find Princess Farrin Falenas for us. She's the only one that's still missing."

"Ah the Crowned Princess, heir to the throne of Falena? That will be most difficult…but I accept."

"How much money are you asking of us?" Gunther asked the stranger.

"We will discuss my fee when I make my report. That sounds reasonable, doesn't it? Until then…" there was a sudden whoosh of wind, and they heard nothing more from the wall.

"Wait a minute," Mokuren said. "This person didn't tell us their name. _And_ they didn't tell us how they could contact us back, or when they could!"

"Well, we didn't throw money at them yet," Gunther said dryly. "So it's not a total loss. Ah, there she is!" he broke away from the group and hurried over to Allise, who was quickly approaching them. "Did you experience any problems?"

"No," Allise reassured them. "A few helpful soldiers were even kind enough to help me tie my sugar to my horse. Have you learned anything new?"

"No," Surya said. "None of the citizens are speaking about anything other than the Nagarean religion. If Signe is here, they either don't know or they wouldn't dare speak about it openly."

"It could go either way, really." Allise took up towards the large Garrison overlooking the town. Up close it looked like a tower with six floors. "I know a couple of secret passageways that we can use to enter the Garrison. If we go southwest of here we will find a boarded up abandoned well. It should take us directly underneath the Garrison."

Daunte wanted to ask how she knew so much about secret passages with the Garrison, but he ultimately decided to keep it to himself. _Maybe she used that well to sneak off and get her divorce?_

They followed Allise in the direction of the abandoned well. It took them away from the town square and to a more quiet section of Kõrkus. Daunte knew the seclusion should've calmed his nerves, but he was immediately on edge. He looked at their surroundings and didn't see anyone, but he had a sudden bad feeling.

 _Are we being followed?_ He looked at the others and saw they were also on edge. Except for Allise though, who carried a nonchalant air about herself.

After several minutes of walking, Daunte saw the well six meters away. Before he could say anything though, a sudden shout caused them all to freeze in their tracks. "Stop right there!"

From the shadows around them, soldiers in silver uniforms surfaced and surrounded them. Daunte counted thirteen, and he squeezed his palm around his tekko. _Damn it._

"Can we help you?" Allise asked them smoothly.

"The six of you look familiar to me," the captain said harshly. He glared at each of them in kind. "What is your business in Kõrkus?"

"We're travelers," Allise said vaguely.

"Where are you from?"

"Uaminifu."

"How long do you plan on staying?"

"Just three more days."

The captain fired off question after question and Allise answered each one promptly. Her readiness however didn't make Daunte feel better, and he kept himself guarded.

Finally the captain asked, "When the prophet Shamir preached on the banks of Golden River, what was his seventh warning?"

"…Excuse me?" Allise said. Her tone faltered.

"If you are a Nagarist believer as you say, then this should be easy. The prophet Shamir gave a sermon in the chapter _'Blood of the Fallen'_ , and he gave thirteen warnings. What was the seventh one?"

Daunte's mind drew a blank, and he quickly looked at Gunther. The lieutenant was starting to look very nervous. Daunte looked back at Allise and saw that the young woman's demeanor had become stiff, and she shifted nervously where she stood.

"Well?!" the captain snapped.

"…I admit defeat," Allise said softly, lowering her hands to her sides. "I do not know the answer to that question."

"Then you are not true believers." He waved to the other soldiers. "Seize them!"

" _Daunte."_

Daunte shuddered as he heard that familiar voice whisper in his mind. Despite the seriousness of the situation, his ears naturally strained to hear that voice. The memory of his mother's voice.

" _Daunte, this chapter is about the Shamir, a famous prophet of the Nagarist faith. It showed how he was guided by his faith, and how he showed no fear in the face of danger. By going up onto High Peak Mountain, and giving his sermon there—"_

"Hold on!" Daunte shouted as the soldiers rounded upon them.

"You will hold your tongue, heathen!" the captain snapped.

"Your question was a total lie!"

Something flickered in the man's eyes and his glare turned darker. "What did you say to me?!"

"The prophet Shamir didn't preach on the banks of Golden River in _Blood of the Fallen_ ," Daunte told him harshly. "He preached in the High Peak Mountains! _And_ he did not have thirteen warnings, but five! You cannot ask what the seventh warning was, because there _was_ no seventh warning!"

"Well that explains why I couldn't remember that portion of the Scriptures," Allise said. She smiled darkly at the captain. "Deliberate misquoting of the Scriptures is a crime, is it not? That's most unkind of you to entrap us like that with a question that is impossible to answer."

"Do you dare accuse me of being a liar?!"

"Why don't we get a copy of the Scriptures and see which one of us is lying?"

"I won't be accused by heathens like you of being a heretic! Get them now and lock them up in the Garrison!"

Daunte looked at Surya, and he saw hope in the prince's eyes. They needed to get into the Garrison anyways. Being arrested and taken in as prisoners would be much easier than trying to transverse a secret passage to get in! He looked at Gunther, and saw the lieutenant read his mind and had the same idea.

"It seems we have no choice," Gunther said. The six of them raised their hands in surrender.

* * *

The group was marched to the gates of Keha Hale's Garrison. Along the way they encountered various townspeople, who shouted incriminations at them and opened prayed for the "heretics". Inwardly, Daunte was more focused on trying to formulate a plan on how to get to Princess Signe. _I don't doubt she's there, but I hope they don't spirit her away when they take us in._

They reached the gates of the Garrison, and shackles were fastened to their wrists and ankles. The sensation of the shackles immediately invoked unpleasant of the Dark Chasm inside of Daunte and he shuddered, shrinking a little into himself.

 _Get it together. You're going to be all right._

"Are you all right?" Surya asked him.

Daunte nodded stiffly, not trusting his voice.

"Sir!"

A guard sprinted from the gates and ran towards the captain. Allise saw the guard and immediately stiffened. "Oh," she said at length.

"Oh, what?" Gunther asked her.

"That's one of the soldiers who helped me tie my bags of sugar to my horse."

A sudden feeling of dread swelled inside Daunte, and he watched the guard whisper quickly to the captain. The captain's eyes quickly snapped to Allise and they widened with shock. _Oh, no._

"Halt!" the captain shouted, gesturing with his hand. He quickly approached Allise. "Take those shackles off of her this instant!"

"W-What for?" Allise said, trying and failing to keep her tone nonchalant.

The shackles were quickly removed from her and the captain stood in front of her. He bowed stiffly. "Welcome back to Kõrkus, Lady Allise Hale."

Gunther cursed violently under his breath, and Daunte looked at the others. He honestly didn't know what to do.

"L-Lady Allise?" Allise said. There was fear in her voice, and that fear made Daunte even more nervous. "Who is Lady Allise? I know of no such—"

"Please forgive my impudence with you," the captain interrupted. There was no kindness in his voice, and Daunte was not reassured by his forced politeness. "If you would come with me we shall escort you to more appropriate quarters. And we will send word to the Sheikh of your return."

"L-L-Listen to me," Allise said, raising her hands slightly. She laughed nervously. "Do _I_ look like the wife of a Sheikh? Would the wife of a Sheikh dress as I am right now? There must be some mistake. I'm not—"

"Please come with us."

Two guards seized Allise's arms. "Take your filthy hands off of her!" Gunther roared. He tried to surge forward, but the shackles he wore tripped him and he sprawled to the dirt.

" _Fog of Deception_!" Surya shouted, raising his hand as best as he could. Several moments passed, and Daunte's eyes widened. The Water Rune didn't activate at all.

"Trying to cast a Rune spell?!" a guard snapped. He punched Surya in the face. "Don't waste our time! This Garrison is equipped to block any and all Rune spells! It's prevent heathens like you from hurting faithful believers like us again!"

"How _dare_ you raise a hand to the Prince?!" Mokuren raged. She tried to lunge at the guard but was ultimately unsuccessful due to her shackles.

"Guys, please don't fight!" Allise called over her shoulder as she was pulled towards the double doors of the Garrison. "I'll be all right! Just take care of yourselves!"

" _Do_ take care," the captain said as he turned back to them. "For what little time you have left."

"Little time?" Freyr asked.

"The five of you will be executed tomorrow morning. As per the teachings of the Scriptures, heretics like you need to be purged from the world."

"But _you're_ the one who misquoted your own Scriptures!" Mokuren pointed out.

Nothing more was said to them however as they were dragged by their shackles towards the prison cells. Daunte looked back up at the Garrison. _So now we must rescue Princess Signe_ _ **and**_ _Allise. But first things first…we need to rescue ourselves._

* * *

"Please wait in here, my Lady."

Allise knew the room. It was a sitting room filled with lavish furniture. She never liked this room. Red was Keha Hale's favorite color, and it was never more apparent than in this room. The furniture, the carpets, the tapestries—they were so dark red that it looked like a bloodbath had occurred in the room.

Allise took a seat on a settee near the window. The window had bars on it. Within seconds she was fidgeting violently. After a moment she got up and began pacing the room. She tried to remain calm, but it was impossible.

 _It's okay. It's okay. He's not here, he's in the capital. I just have to sit around and play nice until Gunther and the others break out. Then we'll be gone before he comes back. Everything is going to be okay…_

The door to the sitting room suddenly opened. Allise's back was to the door, but she saw the reflection in the window. She saw it before she heard, "It's been a long time."

Her mind went blank. Her jaw dropped open and she instinctively flinched, and huddled into herself. Her breath came out in quick, panicked gasps as she slowly turned around.

"My darling."

There he was, dressed in his Sheikh robes. There were deep wrinkles around his gray eyes that hadn't been there before, but it was him. The same imposing voice and body. And beneath the hood, she knew it was the same imposing face.

"Nothing to say to your husband, Allise?" Sheikh Keha Hale asked her. He closed and locked the door behind him. "I've missed you, my lovely wife."

Allise couldn't find the words to speak. She wanted to scream, but she couldn't. All she could do was stand there trembling, hyperventilating.

"But as sweet as this reunion is, I'm afraid I have some bad news for you, Allise." Keha slowly paced the room, though his eyes never left hers. "I've exhausted with this little… _game_ of ours. You're going to give me what I want, and you're going to give it to me." He came to a stop directly in front of her. "Now."

* * *

The prison was nothing more than two giant cells. One cell was empty though, while the second contained the party. Their surroundings were dark, and it didn't smell particularly good. It reminded Daunte of rotting cabbage, and that thought alone turned his stomach.

"We have to get out of here," Gunther said for the umpteenth time. He was pacing back and forth in the cell.

"They seized our weapons and our Runes are disabled," Surya said hotly. "We need a plan and _fast_."

"Why would this Garrison be equipped to block Rune spells?" Freyr wondered out loud. "What would be the purpose of that?"

"Someone in town mentioned that a Chapel was blown up with a Rage Rune a few years ago," Mokuren said softly. "Would that have something to do with it?"

"That's the official reason, but I think I know the _real_ reason," Gunther said savagely. He looked upwards towards the ceiling. "The Sheikh—that bastard probably set this up to contain Allise. So she could never use her Pale Gate Rune against him!"

That suddenly made everything make a lot more sense. Allise obviously did not have a happy marriage with Keha Hale. It did seem puzzling though why a woman armed with such a powerful Rune would put up with an abusive environment for so long. Especially if she could just use the Rune to end him once and for all.

But if Keha Hale set up a way to block Runes from being used, then Allise wouldn't have been able to use her Rune. And by extension, _none_ of them could use their Runes.

"I don't like this," Freyr admitted. He fiddled with his hands in his lap. "I don't like the thought that Signe is here. We have to find a way out of here before tomorrow! We won't be able to find anybody if we're dead!"

"We won't be able to _do_ anythingif we're dead," Gunther muttered.

"Well, it looks like we have the same goals."

Daunte jumped at this voice and turned around. With everything that was going on, the five of them didn't even notice that two people had already occupied the large cell. It was a man and woman, and they looked very familiar to Daunte.

"They're making too much noise," the woman replied. Her ruby eyes were narrowed and she yawned widely. "How am I supposed to get any sleep?"

" _Are we done here? This nonsense is trying my patience."_

"Ah!" Daunte shouted, startling Gunther and Surya. He pointed at the duo sitting together on the bench. "S-Sierra!"

"Sierra?" Surya asked. He looked at the couple and paused. "Wait. Don't we know them from somewhere?"

"How do you know my name?" Sierra asked. Not even a breath later she was standing directly in front of Daunte, causing the boy to scramble back in shock. "My reputation is known even in this remote country? What a surprise."

"We saw you," Surya interject. "Both of you." He looked at the man. "You both were in Tenaga and you almost got arrested."

"Ah, yes!" the man said in a rather chipper tone, standing up. "We were not expecting to be accosted so quickly upon our arrival here! But thanks to my missus, we made it out of there just fine!"

"But now you're here," Freyr pointed out.

"Nash," Sierra said, looking over his shoulder. "Don't be a rude child. Introduce us."

Nash twitched, but his smile stayed in place. "Of course." But Daunte heard him mutter, "Old hag…"

"What was that?" Sierra asked him. Her tone had become dangerously dark.

"I said I'll introduce us." He gestured to himself. "My name is Nash Latkje. I've traveled all the way from the Northern Continent to this _lovely_ country with my wife—"

"Sierra Mikain," Sierra interjected. She leaned down so that her face was directly over Daunte's. "Did I frighten you? I'm sorry."

"I-I'm fine," Daunte said, standing back up.

"The Northern Continent?" Surya asked. At the same time Gunther sputtered, "You're _married_?!"

"Quite," Sierra said. She held up her left hand and a golden band rested on her pale ring finger.

"Damn," Gunther grumbled, looking away.

"I still can't believe you traveled all the way from the Northern Continent to an isolated country like Nagarea," Surya said. "That's quite a distance!"

"Well, Prince Surya," Nash said. "I—"

"How did you know his name?!" Mokuren snapped. She instinctively reached for her naginata, but upon realizing it was gone she lunged at Nash again. "Who are you really?!"

"H-Hey, no need to get violent," Nash said defensively, trying to hold himself still while Mokuren wrung his neck. "I'm nobody important!"

"He's a spy from Harmonia," Sierra said dully. She examined her fingernails and sat back down on the bench, completely unmindful of the fact that her husband was under attack. "He came here looking for a True Rune, and I invited myself along."

"Hey!" Nash shouted indignantly. "A-Are you trying to kill me?!"

"You're looking for a True Rune," Sierra reminded him. She suddenly pointed to Daunte. "He has it."

"W-WHAT?!" Nash shouted, looking at Daunte.

"All right, who on earth ARE you two?!" Surya snapped, glaring between Nash and Sierra. "You're a spy from some country?! And how do _you_ know about Daunte's Rune?"

"Actually, I think the word 'spy' is too broad of a description," Nash said weakly. "I'm really—"

"Of course I know you have a True Rune," Sierra said coldly. "Do you take me for a fool?"

Daunte gaped at her for a long moment before he found the courage to speak. "B-But… _how_ did you know? I haven't even used it!"

Sierra raised her right hand and showed him the back of it. He recognized the moon symbol he'd seen in Tenaga. "Speaking as one True Rune wielder to another…I know."

"You have a True Rune, too?!" Gunther gasped, looking at her.

"Guys?!" Freyr snapped suddenly. "We have bigger things to worry about! Like I'm pretty sure the guards just heard you both admit you had True Runes!" a gate slammed shut in the distance, and heavy footsteps approached them. "Okay, _now_ I'm sure they heard you!"

"We have to get out of here," Surya hissed. "We have to rescue Signe and Allise! When the guards approach, we should attack them at once!"

"That's not necessary," Sierra said. She stood up and approached the cell door. "Out of my way, please."

"What do you intend to do?" Nash asked. They all ducked behind her.

"I'm facilitating our escape," Sierra said plainly. She pressed her right hand against the bars. And waited.

Moments later, what looked like ten guards rounded the corner and stopped in front of the cell. They were all armed with swords and flails. "We won't ask twice! Who has the True Rune?!"

"I do," Sierra told him.

There was a sudden burst of light from her hand and Daunte immediately ducked for cover. His ears popped as a loud explosion filled the air. The ground shook violently and the air filled with thick smoke.

The dust didn't even settle before Sierra stepped over to them, looking nonchalant as usual. "Shall we go?"

"Y-You…" Nash scrambled to his feet and rounded upon her. "You could use the power of the Moon Rune this _whole time_?!"

"Of course," Sierra told him. "A ward blocking Rune spells will never have enough power to block a True Rune."

"We've been down here for _two days_!" Nash hollered, shaking his hands for emphasis. "Why didn't you get us out of here sooner?!"

"There is no sunlight here and I needed rest." Sierra smiled. "Now I'm back at full strength…and quite _hungry_."

"Just rein it in a bit." Nash grabbed her shoulders and looked at the others. "You have two people you want to rescue? We'll tag along."

"You'll help us?" Surya asked him. "Why?"

"Because we're Good Samaritans, that's why."

"Because he's interested in your Rune," Sierra told Daunte.

"Fine, can we go before they take my sister away?!" Freyr interjected.

"You all go on ahead," Sierra told them. "We must take care of something." She looked towards the mortally wounded and dead guards in front of the giant hole in between the twisted-up bars. Blood was splattered all over the walls.

"Old girl, just remember—" Nash said softly.

"I will. And you too." She took him by his arm and pulled him along. She looked over her shoulder at the others with a smile. "Be on your way now. We'll catch up."

Daunte wanted to ask what they were doing, and why it somehow involved those guards, but he ultimately kept it to himself. "Let's go," he said softly to the others.

"Right," Surya said. The five of them hurried out and left Nash and Sierra by themselves.

* * *

They left the cells and collected their weapons at the guard station. They rushed upstairs, and immediately had to dodge several arrows that were fired from the second floor. An alarm bell was clanging in the distance, and several soldiers were rushing down the stairs towards them.

"I know she was trying to help us, but I believe she just created a lot more problems for us," Surya said grimly.

"In here!" Gunther said, nodding towards a door. They ducked into the room and Daunte was relieved to see it was empty except for a couple of treasure chests. "We have to gauge where the Princess and Allise are in the fortress. If I remember correctly, the sleeping quarters for the Sheikh are on the sixth floor."

"So we'll have to battle up six floors worth of soldiers?!" Freyr groaned. "That will be such a waste of time!"

"Forget waste of time," Surya said, glancing out the window. "Without our Runes it will kill us! And while I'm sure Daunte's True Rune works, you only have the one healing spell!"

"We need a plan and _quickly_ ," Daunte said. He checked both treasure chests and found a sack of bits in one, but the other had something odd. It contained a small locked box that had the words 'Window Set 2' stamped onto the surface. Not knowing what else to do with it, Daunte stashed it in his bag. "How many soldiers are stationed here?"

"Forty," Gunther said. He watched the door. "But with the alarm bell chiming, more are bound to show up."

"But we must press forward!" Mokuren insisted. "If we don't, then we'll die anyways and we'll never be able to save the Princess!"

"It—"

A sudden sharp knock on the door startled them. "Are you all finished panicking in there?"

"S-Sierra?" Daunte stammered. He rushed to the door and swung it open. Sierra stood there wearing her usual strange smile, while Nash was standing off to the side looking nervous. The alarm bell was still ringing, but the corridor was filled with silence. Daunte poked his head out and saw dozen of soldiers sprawled unconscious all over the floor. He looked up and saw more soldiers above also unconscious.

"Incredible," Gunther breathed as they stepped into the hallway. "How did you do that?"

Sierra rubbed the Moon Rune on the back of her hand. "I told them all to go to sleep."

"Are they dead?" Freyr asked nervously.

"That would've cost me more power than it was worth. No, they're just napping. But it's just these fellows; I'm certain more will follow so we should hurry and…do whatever it is your group was doing."

"Signe and Lady Allise," Surya said. He looked upwards towards the rails of the other floors. "They're probably on the sixth floor."

"Then we shall go there." Daunte blinked and suddenly Sierra had moved from being in front of them to standing behind her husband. She shoved Nash towards the group. "Here, there's just five of them. Help them fight."

"W-Wait a minute!" Nash said, spinning around. "Why don't _you_ help them fight?! You have a True Rune to use!"

"Do you expect me to do all the work when this is _your_ mission?" Sierra asked him tartly. "Besides, you're better at physical attacks than I am. I'll just stay out of the way and watch."

"That's reassuring," Freyr said sarcastically.

Nash forced a smile at them. "Well, since we're all already here let's get moving!"

"It'll be suicide though to climb six flights of stairs," Mokuren said as they ran up the first flight.

"Why take the stairs when you can take an elevator?" Sierra asked, gesturing to a set of double doors to their right.

"Elevator?!" Surya gaped at the doors briefly. "D-Don't tell me Babbage came here to Nagarea to build an elevator?!"

"Who is Babbage?" Nash wondered.

"He invented elevators, didn't he?" Mokuren asked.

"Well, Dad said he operated a Sindarian elevator before."

"I always thought Adlai invented the elevator," Sierra said thoughtfully.

"Shizu stated so," Nash added. "But there was also a man named Sergei who claims to have invented—"

"Maybe we should debate who invented the elevator another time?" Daunte interrupted.

"Right," Surya said, pushing a button on the wall. The double doors slid open and they ran inside. Surya pressed a button marked '6', and the elevator jolted before ascending.

Unfortunately, the door opened on the third floor and they were met by a group of soldiers. Thankfully the fight was short (and Daunte was impressed with Nash's knife skills) and the elevator began moving again, but it stopped again on the fourth floor and they were greeted by more soldiers.

"This is quite monotonous," Sierra said dully, folding her arms over her chest and watching the others fight.

Finally the elevator reached the sixth floor, and to Daunte's relief there were no enemy soldiers waiting for them. As they stepped out he saw four doors lining the wall, and there were two guards stationed outside of one. If the pair had heard the commotion caused by the fighting and the ringing alarm bell, they hadn't moved a hair.

 _That must be where either Signe or Allise is._

Surya certainly thought so, as the prince stepped forward. "HEY!"

The guards responded predictably, which led to a very short fight that left the guards bleeding and twitching in pain on the ground. "Signe!" Freyr shouted. The boy Prince tried to surge forward but Surya caught his shoulder and held him back.

"Brother!" a young girl's voice shouted on the other side of the door.

"Stay where you are, Signe!" Surya called out to her as they raced to the door. "We're coming!"

They reached the door and it slid open so sharply that it came off its hinges. Inside was a luxurious bedroom decorated with bright red furniture. Daunte's eyes caught the bed and he saw a girl roughly seven years old sitting on the bed bench. Her braided pale hair looked more blonde than silver compared to Archana and Kaylani's hair, and she wide brown eyes that quickly filled with tears. She wore a pale green anarkali dress, and she almost tripped over her skirt as she launched herself from the bench and into Freyr's arms.

"Are you all right? Did they hurt you?" Freyr clung to his little sister tightly while looking her over. Surya knelt down beside them and also looked Signe over.

"I-I-I don't know where I am! I don't know what happened! I woke up in this strange place with these strange people and they scared me! I was so scared!" the Princess was quickly becoming hysterical, and she hiccupped on her words. "I want to go home! I want Mama!"

"We'll go home, just you wait," Freyr promised her. Daunte was moved by how strong the boy was being for his sister, despite his own young age.

"You're safe now, Signe," Surya also reassured her. He pulled out a handkerchief and gave it to the child. "We're going to get you out of here, and then we're going to take you to a safe place where Archana and Kaylani are. Kaylani had her baby, you know. Do you want to meet him?"

"Kaylani had her baby?!" Signe blew her nose and quickly perked up. "She—" then the girl made a face. "It was a boy? She had a _boy_?!"

"Yes."

"Awww, I wanted her to have a girl!"

"We already have enough girls," Freyr said dryly.

"So we rescued the princess," Gunther said. "I understand the urgency in getting her out of here, but I must find Allise."

"We'll find her," Surya said. "We—"

There were several loud thumps reverberating from the ceiling, followed by muted shouts. Everyone quickly looked to the ceiling and then looked at each other. "What was that?" Mokuren asked.

"That's happened a couple times already," Signe said sadly. "I heard a lady screaming, and it scared me!"

"A lady?" Gunther snapped. He didn't wait to hear anymore and bolted from the room.

"Come on, let's go!" Surya shouted. "Signe, stay behind us!"

"I'll stay with the girl," Sierra offered. Once again she moved quickly and took Signe by the hand. Daunte saw the apprehension in Surya's face in leaving Signe in Sierra care, but the prince otherwise didn't protest.

There was a flight of stairs just outside the room, and they caught up to Gunther as they raced up it. As they reached the seventh floor, Daunte heard several more shouts and the slamming of furniture and his stomach clenched. _Please let Allise be all right!_

There were guards waiting for them in front of one of the doors on this floor, and they quickly engaged the guards. From the room, Daunte heard what sounded like… _gagging_. The unnatural sound caused a spike of panic inside of him and he fought more ferociously, trying to end the fight as quickly as possible. He knew the others had also heard the gagging sound, as they also fought fiercer and quicker, and Sierra deliberately hung back with Signe.

They were still taking care of one guard when Gunther raced to the door. The handle didn't turn in his fist and he cursed violently. He frantically kicked at the door and Daunte joined in, and the door exploded off its hinges.

The room was a fancy sitting room, possibly even fancier than the bedroom Signe had been held in. But several pieces of furniture lay broken across the room, and there was a fist-sized hole in the hall.

And…and in the center of the room, a man wearing Sheikh robes was straddling Allise on the floor, and he was _strangling_ her as she frantically struggled beneath him.

"Give me the Rune!" Keha Hale shouted, emphasizing his words with each wringing of Allise's neck. "Give me the Pale Gate Rune, you _bitch_!"

Gunther shrieked, and swung the scabbard of his sword. It smashed right into Keha's nose, and Daunte heard the 'crunch' of his nose breaking. Keha flew off Allise and collapsed to the floor, shouting in pain and pressing both hands to his face.

"Allise!" Gunther dropped his talwar sword and scabbard and knelt beside Allise on the floor. The poor woman rolled onto her side and dry-heaved briefly before vomiting. Her throat was covered in the dark red imprints of Keha's hands and fingers.

"H-How could you _do_ such a thing?!" Mokuren shrieked, rounding upon Keha with her Naginata.

"G-GUARDS!" Keha shrieked as Allise twitched on the floor.

"We have company!" Sierra shouted, pulling Signe into the room. Seconds later more guards burst into the room with their weapons draw.

"K-Kill them all but leave the princess!" Keha snapped. "Bring me that bitch's head! I will have that Rune if it's the last thing I do!"

"Get back here you bastard!" Gunther roared as Keha stumbled past his guards and ran for his life. "I'll kill you! I swear to Nagar I will kill you!"

 _Now I see why Gunther hates him so much,_ Daunte thought darkly.

They quickly fought off the guards and Allise tried to regain her bearings. Signe looked frightened and she awkwardly petted Allise's hair as she took in ragged breaths.

"Well we rescued these lovely young ladies," Nash said after they finished taking care of the soldiers. "But more will come. How do we get out of here?"

"We climb out, of course," Sierra said.

"What?"

Sierra produced a length of coarse rope and tossed it onto the floor. Then she turned towards the barred window and raised her hand. Daunte flinched as her Moon Rune caused yet another explosion, destroying the window entirely and creating a massive hole in the wall, open to the elements. "Like this."

"Where did you get the rope from?" Surya asked her.

"Does it matter? More soldiers are coming, so we'd best get out of here."

Daunte looked down and gulped audibly. They were seven stories up and he was afraid of losing his grip during the climb down. But what other choice did they have?

"More are _definitely_ coming," Freyr said, hurrying forward and taking Signe by the hand. "We need to leave _now_."

"…Right," Daunte said finally. "Let's go."

* * *

They climbed down the side of the Garrison without incident. Signe unfortunately was far too frightened to make the climb down, and truthfully nobody wanted her to do it by herself anyway, so Surya piggybacked her during the climb down. Daunte _did_ lose his grip a few times, but he remained calm and focused his mind and didn't slip.

They reached the courtyard, which was empty due to the chaos inside the Garrison. And to Daunte's shock, their horses were tied up in the stalls as though waiting for them. _They must have confiscated our horses when they arrested us. But this'll make our escape easier._

Nash and Sierra helped themselves to the Garrison horses, and Freyr hoisted Signe up onto his horse before they took off. Allise didn't say much, and the red bruises on her throat were starting to turn purple, but she gestured with her hand and guided her horse towards the back of town. There was another exit back there and it was vacant of guards. The guards had undoubtedly left their posts to respond to the alarm bell.

They rode until Kõrkus was out of sight, and then Surya immediately turned his horse around and rode over to Allise. " _Kindness Drops_." He casted the spell over her.

"Where are we?" Signe asked from behind Freyr.

"Nagarea, Princess," Mokuren told her. "But don't worry, we'll get you home soon enough."

"Is Farrin here too?"

"Yes," Freyr said, looking over his shoulder at her. "But we haven't found her yet."

"Oh. Will you find her?"

"Of course," Surya said. "I'm not leaving this country until we _do_ find her!"

"Me either," Freyr said.

"Well, that was an interesting interlude," Nash said. He cracked his neck and stretched his arms over his head. "You True Rune users always attract interesting people towards you."

"And what does that say about you, then?" Sierra asked him.

Nash grinned. "That I'm an interesting guy, of course. But I _am_ disappointed that I wasn't able to see your True Rune in power, sir…"

"Daunte," Daunte told him. "And I'm not going to use my Rune just to show it off to you."

"Smart young man," Sierra praised softly.

Nash shrugged. "Well then, I must simply invite the both of us into your group in the meantime."

"Invite yourself?" Daunte echoed. "What do you mean?"

"Yours is a group made up of Nagarea's Liberation Army, and Falenan's looking for the Royal Family. Interesting stuff is going to happen to you, and I would like to be there to witness it." Nash bowed dramatically on his horse. "I humbly offer my services to your cause, Daunte."

Daunte frowned. "You're a spy from some other country, aren't you? So how can I trust you?"

"Well, for starters you know I'm a spy—"

"Because I told them," Sierra reminded him.

"—so you'll know exactly what to expect from me. Besides, I've seen the behavior of the people in your government, and it's quite oppressive. I believe a revolution is most beneficial for the country right now, and I would like to see where your revolution takes you."

"It's not _my_ revolution though," Daunte told him. "I'm just part of the Liberation Army. Bearyl Lutis leads it."

"I see." Nash thought about it for a moment before nodding. "Well, I'm sure this Bearyl Lutis will appreciate my expertise. I'll meet with him once we get back to your headquarters."

"I suppose I should come along," Sierra huffed. The moonlight seemed to create a white aura around her. It looked beautiful, but also unnatural. "Someone needs to keep you out of trouble, boy."

"You're too kind, old girl," Nash told her cheekily.

"Everyone."

Daunte was startled by Allise's voice. He turned to see the young woman looking at them. Her face was pale and her eyes looked sad, but she was smiling slightly. "Thank you all for saving my life."

Daunte hesitated before he gathered up the nerve to speak. "Are you all right, Allise?"

"Yes," Allise responded automatically. Thankfully Surya's Water Rune removed the horrible bruises from her throat. But the memory of witnessing the Sheikh strangling her still stung in Daunte's mind.

"Did that man seriously try to kill you over a _Pale Gate Rune_?!" Nash demanded incredulously. "I-I mean, they're not as common as elemental Runes but it's not a damned True Rune! He could go and _buy_ one off some wizard or something!"

"That's what I mean!" Gunther agreed hotly. "All of these horrible things that he's done to you and for what?! For a _common Rune_ that would bring him no status!"

"Humans tend not to think rationally when they become obsessed," Sierra said softly.

"It's really okay," Allise said. "I'm use to this sort of thing from him. It's why I divorced him, after all."

Daunte was actually surprised the Grand Citadel approved of her divorce when they didn't approve of _Tidur's_ divorce, but he shrugged. "Let's get out of here."


	12. Chapter One: Part Twelve

Sorry for the delays. It's been very humid in my area and my air conditioner isn't working properly, so that's made sitting at my computer typing very difficult.

* * *

Part Twelve

Tensions remained high within the group even after they departed Kõrkus. Despite having been rescued, Signe was still distressed by her ordeal and at being in such a different environment than what she was used to. Freyr did what he could to make his little sister comfortable, but the child didn't seem used to his doting behavior.

 _In normal circumstances he's probably a typical big brother—bossy and teasing._ Daunte shook his head. _Huh. I guess_ _ **I'm**_ _not a typical big brother, am I?_

Allise didn't say a word more after they departed. Gunther spoke with her in a gentle tone and used gentle gestures, but she politely rebuked him and kept to herself. Her reunion with her ex-husband, and the subsequent attempted murder he'd tried against her, obviously still weighed on her mind.

But she hung onto it in silence.

"She's going to have nightmares," Sierra said softly.

"She seems like a strong woman," Nash mused, just as quietly.

"Still, she's not dealing with what happened to her. It's going to flare up when she's most vulnerable."

"Speaking from experience, old girl?" Nash teased her.

Sierra laughed, but it was a hollow sound that chill Daunte to the bone. She reached out and pinched Nash's cheek hard. "Only from what I've _witnessed_ , boy."

"Ow, _ow_!" Nash grabbed her wrist to try and loosen the hold, but her grip didn't waver. "A—ow—all right! I'm sorry!"

It was strange to hear the… _endearments_ they had for each other. Sierra physically looked younger than Nash, but he kept referring to her as 'old girl' and even 'old hag', and Sierra likewise referred to Nash as 'boy'. It made him wonder how old they both were supposed to be.

 _Dr. Yulin said True Runes give their wielder immortality, right? So even though Sierra looks younger than Nash…she's probably much older than him. And even all of us, really._

And true to Sierra's words, each night they made camp and went to sleep, Daunte's sleep was broken by Allise's restless sleep, or the sudden short outburst she made when she woke from her nightmares. But she continued to keep to herself, and after each nightmare would wander into the dark away from camp. The first time she did it Daunte panicked and even woke Gunther up to go after her. They followed at a distance to see where she was going, particularly with how unsafe the wilds were at night.

When she finally stopped and sat down, Daunte believed it was a good opportunity to approach her and ask if she was all right. However, Gunther caught his shoulder and shook his head at him. "Wait."

"Why?" Daunte asked, but he got his answer when he saw Allise again. She had pulled her knees to her chest, wrapped her arms around her legs, and pressed her face into her knees. Then her whole body began shaking, although she wasn't making any sounds.

 _She's…crying?_

"We should watch her and make sure she doesn't get attacked," Gunther told him. "Otherwise we should leave her alone."

"She's upset," Daunte said, stating the obvious. "Isn't there anything we can do for her?"

"If she wanted our help with this, then she wouldn't be out here by herself." Gunther ducked his head and frowned deeply. "Until she asks for our help, we should leave her alone."

Daunte didn't feel comfortable watching Allise from a distance, watching while she cried by herself. He felt like he was invading her privacy, but he wanted to make sure she was safe. Gunther also looked tense but he stood his ground and watched their surroundings in case a monster sprung out of the darkness to attack Allise.

After several minutes Allise pulled out a handkerchief and cleaned up her face. Then she stood up, checked her surroundings (and thankfully didn't see them), and hurried back to camp.

Gunther patted Daunte on the shoulder. "Let's go back, too."

"Right." They turned to leave when a sudden roar filled the air and caused the both of them to pause. A chill went down Daunte's spine. It sounded like a monster, but…much _fiercer_.

"You heard that too, right?" Gunther hissed. Daunte nodded and Gunther unsheathed his sword. "Be on your guard, Daunte."

Daunte nodded as they carefully made their way back to camp. A few moments later they heard another roar. It sounded _much_ closer this time, but…it was strange. It sounded like it was coming from _above_ them.

There was a sudden whoosh of wind directly above their heads, and Daunte and Gunther dove for cover. Daunte rolled and readied his tekko as he heard the beating of wings. He looked up, and froze.

"Whoa…" Gunther breathed, also looking up.

What they were staring at wasn't a simple monster. It was a _dragon_. A juvenile dragon that looked the size of a baby panda bear. Under the light of the full moon its golden body shimmered, and it rapidly beat its wings. It didn't look like it was attacking. It just looked like it was flying around. The dragon roared again, swooping towards the ground before turning its body back up towards the sky.

"W-What do we do?" Daunte hissed at Gunther. The young dragon didn't appear to be a threat in any way.

"I don't know," Gunther said. He slowly stood up while holding up his sword.

Above them to their north, there was sharp whistle, and then a shout. " _Suna_!"

The golden dragon immediately obeyed the call, and flew towards a plateau. Daunte stood up, and he saw a figure standing on the plateau. It was difficult to fully see the figure in the darkness, but the moonlight highlighted their features. It was a blonde-haired girl—possibly his own age—and she was dressed in an elaborate uniform he'd never seen before. She gestured to Suna, the dragon, and Suna landed smoothly on the ground in front of her. The girl immediately doted upon the dragon as though she were doting on a puppy, and Suna seemed to respond to the girl as though it were a puppy.

"Huh," Gunther said after a long moment, gaping at this display in the distance. "Maybe we should've brought that girl with us into the Great Cistern?"

Daunte wanted to approach her, but the girl picked up the small dragon into her arms and disappeared from sight. He tugged on Gunther's arm. "Let's go back to camp."

They made their way back to camp, and Daunte flushed when he saw Allise sitting at the fireplace, still wide awake. She looked up as they approached. "Where did you two go off to at this time of night?"

Daunte floundered, obviously not wanting to tell her they followed her to make sure she wasn't attacked. It was Gunther who spoke. "We saw a dragon."

"A dragon?" Allise asked.

"A small dragon, gold in color. It was flying around in the sky and it was obeying the command of a teenage girl."

Allise stared at him for a long moment before she laughed softly. "Gunther, Gunther. Is that the best lie you can think of?"

"It's not a lie," Daunte said. "We saw a small dragon just flying around."

"See, now _you_ have Daunte spouting the same lie as you. You're a bad influence on the boy, Gunther."

"It's not a lie," Gunther insisted. "We—"

But Allise dismissed him with the wave of her hand. "Just go back to sleep. We have to head off early tomorrow."

Daunte knew that she wasn't going to believe their story, but he was also glad she wasn't aware they'd followed her. "G-Good night, Allise."

"Good night."

As he settled back onto his bedroll though, Daunte thought back to the girl with the dragon. It fascinated him that someone could… _domesticate_ a beast like a dragon, but that one girl had succeeded. _There's bound to be more people like her out there._

* * *

They set off the following morning, and at around midday they met a familiar face on the open plains. "Hello there!" Cairoh called out to them, waving. "Would you be interested in my wares?"

After the fight they'd had at Keha Hale's Garrison they definitely needed to replenish their supplies. And since they'd also mugged the soldiers they'd fought, they had enough bits on hand to replenish their herbs.

But Daunte was interested in something else. "Can I see your rare items?" Daunte asked.

"Of course." Cairoh pulled back the drape to his shelf holding the rare items. Daunte was surprised to see most of the amulets gone, but he also saw platinum-colored gauntlets that had an outrageous price tag on them. Otherwise he saw nothing that he could either use or readily afford. "Never mind, sir."

"All right." Cairoh reset the curtain and the group continued buying their supplies.

"Are you _sure_ you don't want to join our Army?" Gunther asked. "We are in serious need of merchants."

"I will give it some thought," Cairoh told him. "But for right now I've made good business here in Winter Hill. Despite my lack of license the travelers here don't seem to mind. I'll be here for the time being, so feel free to come back if you need anything else from me."

They experienced no further troubles on the road back to headquarters. It still took a few days to make it back, but they thankfully weren't followed and the monsters they faced did not give them trouble. Allise however refrained from using her Pale Gate Rune again, and Daunte didn't necessarily blame her.

As they entered the forest leading to headquarters, Daunte's stomach turned as he heard loud commotion coming from the other end of the forest. It didn't sound like fighting, but it was definitely noisy.

"A lot must have happened while we were gone," Gunther said softly. All but Signe dismounted their horses to guide them on the uneven path to the castle. As they drew nearer, Daunte saw Army soldiers about, sharpening their blades and polishing their armor. Everyone seemed to be talking at once, and it became clear to Daunte what was happening.

 _The Army is marching._

"You've returned!" a soldiers shouted as they reached the castle. He hurried over to them. "Sir Gunther! Lady Allise! Lord Bearyl wishes to see you both immediately!"

"I imagine so, with all the people about," Allise said.

"Freyr, take Signe down to see Archana and Kaylani," Surya told his cousin as he lifted Signe from the saddle. "I'll meet up with you shortly."

Thankfully Freyr did not argue this and took his little sister's hand. "Come, let's go see Kaylani's baby."

"Okay!" Signe said, smiling. The child's demeanor had improved considerably since they left Winter Hill, and she skipped alongside her brother into the castle.

"People calling themselves "Queen's Knights" showed up this morning," the soldier continued. "They—"

"T-They've arrived!" Surya sputtered. He rounded upon the soldier. "Is my father here?!"

"I-I don't know who your father—"

Surya ran past him into the castle, and Mokuren hurried after them. Daunte looked at the others and took this as a sign that _they_ needed to hurry as well. They ran after them, and inside Daunte saw more soldiers readying their armor and weapons. _What's going on? If the Queen's Knights are here, then does this mean Bearyl is_ _ **finally**_ _going to aid the royal family?_

They made it to the doors of the war room. Bearyl Lutis, Caesar, Varnaz, and Lorik Varra were standing at the table in the back. Daunte saw four figures dressed in black uniforms close to the doors, and Surya shouted, " _Toma_!"

"Prince Surya. Are you all right?" A uniform-clad man with light pink hair saluted Surya before looking the prince over. His golden eyes shifted to Mokuren. "Excellent work on bringing the prince back safely."

"No thanks are needed," Mokuren said. "I was only doing my duty."

"I've looked in on Lady Archana and Lady Kaylani and I see that both are well and healthy. Have you found Princess Farrin and the others?"

"Freyr and Signe are downstairs and are safe," Surya said. "We haven't found Farrin yet, however."

"I see." Toma turned towards Bearyl and saluted. "On behalf of the Queen's Knights, we thank you for offering sanctuary to the royal family and for your assistance in rescuing them."

"You're quite welcome," Bearyl told him. "I established the Liberation Army because I couldn't stand the injustices occurring with this country. What happened to your princes and princesses is a _grave_ injustice, one I cannot tolerate. We've done all we can to rescue the royals and to keep them safe here, and we will continue to do so."

Surya made an incredulous noise beside Daunte, and Daunte himself bristled. _He's lying about his part in aiding the royal family! He's put forth the bare minimum effort, and he hasn't exactly hidden that he doesn't_ _ **like**_ _helping them!_

"Rest assured that we've sent some of our most dedicated and resilient soldiers out to aid Prince Surya," Bearyl said. He suddenly looked at Daunte. "Isn't that so, Daunte?"

Daunte gaped back at him, amazed at his gall. He didn't know what Bearyl expected to gain from outright lying about his hand in all of this, and taking all the credit for himself. But Daunte also recognized that Bearyl was his commanding officer, and it was because of Bearyl that he was able to get Arin the medical attention he needed. Not to mention the fact that Bearyl gave them safe haven when they had nowhere else to go.

So Daunte swallowed thickly, and nodded. "Yes, sir."

Daunte heard his companions shift and stir from his lie but he kept his gaze on Bearyl, who was nodding with approval. "See now? Through my efforts we have saved five royals thus far and only need to find one more."

" _N-Nash_?!" Caesar sputtered all of a sudden. His lazy eyes widened and he gaped. "What are you doing here?!"

"I could ask you the same thing, Caesar Silverberg," Nash called out from the doors to the war room. "You're quite far from the Toran Republic, aren't you?"

"Do you know that man?" Bearyl asked Caesar.

Caesar shook himself off and straightened. "I served in the same army as him during the Second Fire Bringer War. He's a spy from Harmonia."

"From _Harmonia_?!" Bearyl quickly looked back at Nash. "Did Harmonia send you here to help us?!"

"Not…necessarily," Nash admitted. "However, I did agree to come to this place to assist Daunte. And my missus was nice enough to volunteer."

"You brought your wife along with you on your mission?" Caesar asked.

"Rather, she _invited_ herself along," Nash clarified.

"Well, where is she now?"

"What do you mean? She's right—ack!" Nash spun around as he realized that Sierra was no longer with him. "Where did she go?! Uh, I'll be right back." He fled the war room.

"You said he was a spy, right?" Bearyl asked Caesar. "How are his skills?"

"His personality can be off-setting, but he's got the skills to match his job title," Caesar said. "And if his wife is who I think it is, well then she's even _stronger_ than he is!"

"Excuse me," Surya said. "But can we focus on what's at hand?"

"Princess Farrin is the Crowned Princess and the next Queen of Falena," Toma said. "Queen Lymsleia sees her children and nieces and nephew with equal amount of value, but politically Princess Farrin has the most value out of all the royals. We must find her, and soon."

"We might know where she is." Bearyl walked around the table towards the group. "Our scouts have reported to us that Sheikh Sloan Faakhir has left his Garrison with his primary military unit and has left a staff of only three hundred soldiers behind. Based on this information, it's easy to see that the Sheikh is planning something big."

"That _is_ suspicious," Allise said. "But the Theocracy took the next Queen of Falena to a Garrison and not the capital for holding? That's even stranger."

"So Farrin might be at Sheikh Sloan Faakhir's Garrison?" Surya asked, looking at his Queen's Knights. Daunte inwardly shuddered at the thought of the Crowned Princess being in the custody of that monster.

"Before we rush off anywhere, we need more information," Toma said. He looked at Bearyl Lutis. "Who is Sloan Faakhir and where is his Garrison?"

"The Sheikh's Garrison is due west of here," Bearyl told him. "If you have a good horse and don't encounter many monsters on the road, the trip takes a little over a day."

"We'll need to keep the rescue royals secure and ensure the safety of Princess Farrin," Toma said. He turned to his fellow Queen's Knights. "I've received word that the Commander will be crossing the border tonight so he will meet up with us as well."

"My father is coming?!" Surya exclaimed.

"Of course he is," Toma told him.

"Before all of you rush off like that," Caesar interjected. "I would recommend gathering more information on this matter. We've confirmed that Sloan Faakhir has mobilized his troops and they are heading north, but we haven't confirmed whether or not Princess Farrin is at his Garrison. None of our scouts have been able to spot her."

"How would you know who to look for?" Toma asked, turning to face him. "Do you know what she looks like?"

"A fourteen-year-old girl in the Sheikh's Garrison would be hard to miss," Caesar told him.

"But we should still look," Surya insisted. "Faakhir has mobilized his troops for a reason!"

"That he has."

This new voice caused everyone to jump. Daunte quickly turned as the people around him drew their weapons.

"Ah, I am unarmed." A man with tawny hair tied in a long ponytail was standing there. He was dressed in silver robes that identified him as a Holy Army soldier, but he had no hood on his head. He appeared to be a man in his late sixties, but he stood straight and tall and despite some deep wrinkles on his face his features seemed oddly youthful. He was smiling as he stepped further into the room, but despite the friendliness of his demeanor there seemed to be something…off about him. "I am not your enemy."

"You come into my headquarters dressed like the Theocracy's soldiers and don't expect me to see you as a threat?!" Bearyl boomed. At his shout three Liberation Army soldiers rushed into the room with their swords drawn.

"Well, it _is_ much easier to travel in the country dressed like this," the man said. He was completely unperturbed about being surrounded as he was. "But it's as I say. I am your ally, not your enemy."

" _But I speak truthfully when I tell you that I'm your ally."_

"Ah!" Daunte shouted, startling Surya. He surged forward and pointed at the stranger. "You! We met you in Tenaga and Kõrkus!"

"We did?" Gunther asked warily.

The man's smiled widened. "How very nice of you to recognize me…Daunte, was it? I've come here to deliver my report to you."

"Wai—WAIT!" Toma shouted, also surging forward. His eyes went wide. "You—I know you!"

The stranger glanced at him. "Ah, long time no see. I see you're still a Queen's Knight, Toma."

"Who is this person?" Mokuren asked.

"Oh, I haven't introduced myself have I?" the man reached into his pocket and pulled out a large stack of card. "My name is Oboro. I'm the lead detective of the Oboro Detective Agency of Falena. How do you do?" he nonchalantly handed out his cards to the people surrounding him. "Please accept my business cards."

Daunte looked down at the card. It was intricately designed and had the name of the agency neatly printed on it. _So, he carries around advertisements for his agency?_

"Where exactly have you been?!" Toma sputtered. "I mean we keep seeing all those other detectives sneaking around Falena on jobs, but nobody's seen _you_ in years!"

"I've returned to Falena," Oboro said defensively. "But I cannot stay while my work here in Nagarea is unfinished."

"But you left for Nagarea right after the Civil War! That was two decades ago!"

"Yes, well I can't just abandon my case. What sort of detective would I be if I did?"

"Wait, _you_ fought in Falena's Civil War?!" Varnaz suddenly asked behind them. "How old were you when you did?!"

"Eleven," Toma responded over his shoulder. Daunte's eyes widened with shock at hearing this.

"It doesn't surprise me," Caesar mused. "The battlefield doesn't spare children, after all."

"You're a detective?" Bearyl interrupted, directing his question at Oboro. His tone showed he didn't necessarily believe him.

"I've heard of him," Caesar said, reading the card Oboro gave him. "Your agency was instrumental to the Loyalist Army during the Falenan Civil War. I've heard that your information network rivals that to the ninjas of the Toran Republic."

"I'm very proud of the work my employees do," Oboro told him pleasantly. "Why, just over thirty years ago I only had three detectives working under me. Now I have a team of over twenty detectives!"

"So your specialty is information gathering?" Bearyl asked. With Caesar's input on the matter he seemed more interested. "What exactly have you learned?"

"Well, this young man hired me to find Princess Farrin," Oboro said, gesturing to Daunte. "And I've come to make my report on the matter."

"Did you find the princess?" Daunte asked him.

"Of course I did," Oboro said. "Princess Farrin had been confined to Sheikh Sloan Faakhir's Garrison."

"Wait, _was_?!" Surya interjected. "Where is she now?!"

"After the lot of you stormed Kõrkus's Garrison and rescued Princess Signe, the Sheikh received orders to move Princess Farrin as quickly as possible. So he mobilized most of his infantry and is escorting the princess into the High Peak Mountains."

Daunte sucked in a sharp breath. The High Peak Mountains were _highly_ dangerous and very expansive. They also framed the entire northwest coastline and the cliff sides along the beach were very steep. It was easy to lose your footing and fall to your death. He'd heard stories that mining use to occur within the mountains but operations had ceased due to the dangerous monsters. And the hostile Wingers that lived in the mountain range.

"So that settles it," Surya said, looking at Toma. "We'll follow the Sheikh into High Peak Mountains."

But Toma shook his head at the prince. "I've been given orders that you are to stand down, Prince Surya."

"What?" Surya's face fell when he heard this. "What for?"

"The Commander has given orders for you to stay put and secure your cousins. He gave me this order directly before I left Falena."

"I…I see." Surya ducked his head but he didn't argue further. "If the Commander orders it, then I'll obey the order."

"I'll stand with you, Prince," Mokuren said. "Don't worry, they'll rescue Princess Farrin."

"We should send word to the Commander of where to meet up with us," Toma said. "He's currently sailing the coastline with other Knights."

"Then he will most likely land at the Northern Wharf," Caesar said. "Just tell him to follow the beach westward and he will find the mountains."

Daunte looked back at Oboro. "Sir, I know I still owe you money—"

"You would like for me to make contact with the Commander and give him this new piece of information?" Oboro asked. He smiled gently. "I would be glad to. It's been years since I've met with the Commander. He was only seventeen years old when he led the Loyalist Army and hired my agency, but he was a boy with a good constitution and strong will."

"My father is a great man," Surya said. His voice swelled with pride.

"Indeed his is. You remind me a lot about him." Except that Oboro was looking at _Daunte_ when he said this, not Surya. It made Daunte a little uncomfortable being compared to a teenaged war hero with the man's son standing right next to him. But Surya didn't look offended by Oboro's comment and instead fished into his pockets. "How much money do you require?"

"I'm technically still working, so we'll discuss my fee after I meet up with the Commander," Oboro said. He bowed slightly. "Well, if you'll excuse me…"

"Hold on," Bearyl said. "You said you were unarmed, right? Allow me to give you some escorts so you may reach the Northern Wharf safely."

"Thank you for the offer, but I would be much better off by myself. Don't worry; despite my age I'm quite good at taking care of myself." Oboro straightened. "Well, until later…"

Daunte half-expected him to simply disappear, as he had before. Oboro instead simply turned around and walked out of the room. He took the stairs and disappeared out of sight.

"If Oboro is as good as he was during the Civil War, he might beat the Commander to the Wharf," Toma said. He looked at Bearyl. "My Lord, our agents will be arriving here tonight. We intend to set out for High Peak Mountains tomorrow morning and meet up with the Commander. We appreciate your cooperation in all of this."

"It's the least I can do," Bearyl said. He waved to them. "It's still early, but it's best that you all get rested up. Tomorrow will be a very busy day for us all."

 _So that is why the Army is getting ready to march,_ Daunte thought as he saluted Bearyl and followed the others out of the room. _We're marching to assist the Falenan royal family. It's about time…_

* * *

Outside of the war room the group dispersed and went their own separate ways in the castle. Daunte headed downstairs towards the infirmary, hoping to meet up with Arin and check up on Archana's condition. Since Toma had said that Archana and Kaylani were fine, he knew that the Exploding Rune hadn't done permanent damage to Archana.

 _But I hope she's still fine nonetheless._

"There's too much natural light here."

Daunte glanced towards a dark corner of the main hall. Sierra was sitting there, holding a cloak over her head. _So that's where she went_ , Daunte thought.

"The sunlight exhausts me, but I can't sleep because the rays of light give me a headache," Sierra complained. "It was a mistake to come here."

"Chin up, old girl," Nash tried to reassure her. _He_ didn't seem bothered by the simple sunlight. "Do you see me complaining about the sun?"

Sierra glared at him. The gaze chilled Daunte to the bone. "The sunlight doesn't bother you because you're _used_ to it."

Nash smiled at his wife. "Maybe it's my youth that—AUGH!" he shouted in pain as Sierra reached out and pinched his arm. _Hard_. "Ow, I'm sorry! Let me go!"

Daunte thought it was a good idea to keep his distance from the…happy couple, so he continued downstairs. He saw that Surya and Mokuren were following him so he knew they were also heading for the infirmary. Down the corridor leading to the infirmary however, what he saw caused him to stop in his tracks.

"Brother!" Arin was on his feet and running towards Daunte. He didn't waver where he stood and he didn't look sickened. He looked lively— _healthy_.

Daunte raced towards his brother and swept him up into a hug. He squeezed the child tight in his arms and squeezed his eyes shut. _It's over. I didn't think it was possible, but it's over!_

"He's got more energy than I do," Roen laughed as he approached them. "It's amazing what decent food and decent healthcare can do for the human body. You would never realize he was sick at all with how he looks now!"

"I heard the Army is mobilizing tomorrow," Arin said, pulling back slightly. "Can I come along, too?"

"Whoa there, Arin," Felicity said, reaching up to ruffle his hair. "Maybe you should practice with a sword first before fighting!"

Arin pouted, but he nodded in resignation as Daunte set him back down. "But I know you guys will be victorious!"

"How's your cough?" Daunte asked him.

"It's much better. I—" but Arin broke off with another coughing fit. Daunte was relieved by the sound though, as it wasn't a wheezing raspy cough but it sounded clear and normal. "I-I'm fine," Arin finished. "I'm well enough that Dr. Clara told me I could leave the infirmary. W-We have our own room downstairs, Daunte!"

"That's good," Daunte said.

"You look leagues better than you did before," Surya agreed. "Did you see my cousins, Arin?"

Arin nodded. "They're both awake, but Princess Archana seems upset about something. She hasn't said much and she looks like she wants to cry."

"Prince Surya." Israfil's voice floated over to them as he came down the corridor. He was carrying an armful of blankets. "I'd heard you returned and you brought Princess Signe with you. Well done."

"Thank you, General. But why are you carrying all of that?" Surya gestured to the blankets.

"The doctor felt that I was getting in the way and asked me to make myself useful," Israfil told him. Daunte was surprised to see someone with his rank be so unabashed about being dismissed for "getting in the way".

"So she sent you to fetch clean linens?" Surya asked, also surprised.

Israfil shrugged. "It's the least I can do."

"Do you want to see the Princesses?" Arin asked. "I thought I saw the other Prince and Princess go into the infirmary."

"Sure, let's go," Daunte said.

"Hopefully our presence doesn't antagonize the doctor," Mokuren muttered.

When they entered the infirmary Daunte immediately looked for Archana. Despite the reassurances that Archana was fine, he couldn't help but still be concerned for her health. To his immense relief, he saw Archana sitting up in bed. She was playing a card game with Freyr and Signe, who were also sitting on the bed, and the latter looked _much_ happier than she had earlier. There were a couple of patients in there as well, but they didn't look bothered by the presence of the royals. In fact, it seemed like to Daunte that the sick and injured were taking comfort by their presence.

"—like this," Archana was saying. Out of the corner of Daunte's eye he saw Israfil carry his linens to a cabinet on the other side of the room. "I'm the _kuppin_ , so I'll deal the cards to you two, the _shippin_. Now in order to reach _Kabu_ , one of us has to draw enough cards to equal nine. Understood?"

"I think so," Freyr said, examining his cards.

"I don't get it," Signe complained softly. "Can't we play _Go Fish_?"

"Sure," Archana said. "We—oh!" she looked up as she spoke and saw the group standing in the doorway. "You've returned, Surya!"

"Where's Kaylani?" Surya asked, looking around the infirmary. Daunte also noticed the other princess was gone, as was Silvano and their baby.

"She's giving her son his first bath," Archana said pleasantly. "Have you seen him yet, Surya? My little nephew is so handsome!"

"We did," Surya said. He came further into the room and gestured to Freyr. The boy understood and began collecting the cards. "We received word about Farrin's whereabouts. We're leaving tomorrow to retrieve her."

"I—" Freyr began.

"And you're staying put," Surya told him curtly. "The Commander has ordered _me_ to stay put as well, so don't get any bright ideas."

"Uncle Freyjadour told you _not_ to look for Farrin?" Freyr asked. "But then why did he allow you to go on this mission in the first place?!"

"Because as you've already seen, many Queen's Knights have already arrived in the country. My father is arriving sometime tonight and is going to rendezvous with the others. With any luck we'll secure Farrin sometime tomorrow and we'll be on our way back to Falena."

"Is Mama here too?" Signe asked hopefully.

Surya reached out and tugged on one of her braids playfully. "You know the law, Signe. During times of conflict both the Queen and the Commander of the Queen's Knights can't be away from the Sun Palace at the same time. While one is gone, the other must stay to secure and maintain the Queendom. If my father is on his way here, then that must mean that Aunt Lym is the one securing the Sun Palace."

"Oh. But what about Papa?"

"If Mom stayed behind Signe, then Dad stayed behind to protect her in our uncle's absence," Freyr told her. "We'll see our parents soon enough."

"Oh."

"Do you know if my father is on his way here?" Archana asked softly.

" _That_ I don't know," Surya said. "But if everything goes well tomorrow, then we'll all be back home within a couple of days."

"I see." Archana rubbed at her forehead, her fingers ghosting over the spot where the Exploding Rune had been attached. "I hate to sound like a pessimist, but this all seems like a bad dream."

"Are you feeling better?" Daunte asked.

Archana began to nod, but then she moaned quickly and forced a smile. "A-A little bit. I'll feel better once I'm able to get home."

"Hmm."

An awkward silence hung in the air as Daunte stood there with the others and Archana sat in bed. The black color of her mourning dress didn't exactly make her look healthy. "I—"

"I wanted to thank you."

Daunte blinked. "Eh?"

"My memories are a bit murky from when that Rune was activated," Archana said. "But I remember you, Daunte. I remember you trying to save me, and commanding your Rune to get the Exploding Rune off my head. I…" She bowed slightly from where she sat. "Thank you, for saving my life."

Daunte wanted to accept her thanks, but he felt awkward about being given full credit for something that involved other people. "Y-You're welcome, Lady Archana, but it wasn't just me." he gestured to Israfil on the other side of the room. "The General here tried to pull the Rune off with his bare hand."

"I-I'm hardly worthy of praise," Israfil immediately responded, approaching him. "What I did made absolutely no difference."

"Regardless, thank you," Archana said. She lifted her head, and Daunte saw deep sadness in her eyes. "And I'm sorry. I put all of you in an inconvenient position. I hop—"

"How can you say that, Archana?!"

Everyone jumped at Kaylani's shout. The princess stormed into the infirmary, cradling her son to her chest, as she walked around the group and rounded upon her older sister. "Did I just hear you say that your rescue was an _inconvenience_?!"

Archana raised her hands slightly. "Kaylani, I was only—"

"Don't you see any value in yourself?!" Kaylani snapped back at her. Daunte could hear the tears in her voice. "How can you speak about yourself as if you're not worth anything?! Do you have any idea what would happen to us if you died?! I already suffered through that once time, Sister, and I don't want to go through it again!"

Daunte felt _incredibly_ awkward witnessing this and the looked at the others. Signe was frantically glancing back and forth between her older cousins. Freyr was plucking at the bedspread of the bed beside Archana's as though to occupy himself. Mokuren clearly looked like she wanted to step in and interfere but she stayed where she was. Surya however wore a stony expression, and also remained silent.

"Kaylani, please don't shout." Archana's voice was still calm, but her emotional state was heightening. "You'll disturb the ba—"

"What does my son, your nephew, matter to you?! You've changed, Archana, and not for the better! I've watched you wither away until you're nothing more than a shell of your former self, and then I have to hear you speak about your own life like it doesn't mean anything! Don't you give a damn how much we've all suffered with you all this time?!"

"Kaylani, I lost Darrick!" Archana shot back at her, her voice rising. "You cannot possibly understand what I'm going through because it's never happened to you! Your husband is alive and well! My husband is not, and I lost him the worst possible way you could ever lose someone you love! I watched him _die_ right in front of my eyes, from the same poison that _didn't_ kill me! So I'm sorry if my brooding is too much for you, but this is pain I've had to suffer with since the day he died! And it isn't going to simply go away just because my mourning period is almost over!"

"I understand your suffering," Kaylani told her. "And I know that if I ever lost Silvano like that, that I probably would lose the will to live! But is that what's happened to you, Archana?! Are you so dismissive about your life because Darrick is no longer in it?!"

"I loved Darrick!" it was a loud shriek. Archana was gripping the bedsheets and tears were streaming down her face. "I love him, Kaylani! I've always loved him, and I will _never_ stop loving him! But not once have I ever thought about ending my own life! Do you know what the _only_ thing I was thinking about when that Rune activated?! 'I don't want to die. I don't want to die'! I didn't see it as an opportunity to end it all! All I wanted to do was survive! So you don't you _ever_ accuse me of not holding any value over my life again!"

Archana's shouting had startled the group, and Daunte gaped between the two sisters. Kaylani had also started crying, although her baby was currently crying harder than the two of them combined. The princess was trembling where she stood, and she opened her mouth to speak. "I—"

"Why is there shouting in my infirmary? Do any of you have any care for the injured recovering in here?!"

Everyone jumped at Clara's harsh tone. The young doctor stormed into the room, glaring at them all. Silvano had followed her in and rushed to his wife's side. "Did I not make it expressly clear that I don't want anyone upsetting Lady Archana?! After the ordeal she suffered, the last thing she needs is to have more stress induced upon her!"

"I-I," Archana sputtered, wiping away her tears with the sleeve of her dress. "I'm s-sorry. This is my fault."

"If none of you can conduct yourselves like adults, then you will need to leave!" Clara snapped. She glared at Kaylani. "I will excuse your heightened emotional state due to having given birth days ago, but this is my final warning. I will not tolerate _any_ antagonism in here!"

"I-I-I understand," Kaylani stammered. She bowed as Silvano took their son from her arms. "Please excuse me for shouting."

"There are too many people in here," Clara said. She waved to them. "All of you, out! I'm sure you have other places to be anyways!"

"Yes, let's go," Surya said. He took Signe by the hand. "We have to prepare for tomorrow, anyways."

The group was herded towards the door by Clara. Daunte saw that Israfil had not been included in the group being evicted from the infirmary, but he also saw that the General looked very uncomfortable and deeply stressed. The man ducked his head and occupied himself with straightening the linens in the closet.

As they reached the door, Daunte turned towards Clara. "Thank you for restoring my brother's health," he said, bowing.

Clara stilled, and her features relaxed. Only somewhat. "You're welcome, Daunte. Now, please be on your ways."

* * *

Night had fallen. Daunte appreciated the room he shared with Arin. It was pretty bare besides the two twin beds, but the beds were far more comfortable than the ones in the Dark Chasm.

But Daunte couldn't sleep. He looked at the ceiling for a long time before rolling over to look at Arin. His little brother was fast asleep in his bed. It still warmed his heart to see his brother breathing so easily now, and sleeping so easily.

 _He's well, and I owe Bearyl Lutis for that. So I_ _ **must**_ _rest up and be ready for tomorrow._

He tried to curl up and go to sleep, but sleep still did not come to him. Frustrated, Daunte kicked back the covers and stood up. _Maybe I should take a walk around._

The Liberation Army headquarters was mostly silent. Everyone was undoubtedly resting for the campaign. It was strange wandering around in the darkness and to hear virtual silence, but Daunte didn't feel on edge.

He first went downstairs towards the small training arena. In a room without a door, he was surprised to find Nash and Sierra. Nash was still awake, while Sierra was fast asleep.

"Good evening," Nash greeted him. "You should really get some rest. You'll be quite busy tomorrow."

"You'll be busy too, right?" Daunte asked him.

Nash winced and shook his head. "I'm afraid we're going to have to sit this one out. Sierra hasn't been feeling good all day, and it shows."

"It shows?"

Nash gestured to her sleeping form. "She generally doesn't sleep at night, and yet now she's in a very deep sleep. I think she's not…eating well."

"She didn't eat the entire time we traveled to here," Daunte mused. "It's no wonder she's so sick then. I know it's none of my business, but does she have some sort of food allergy? I know Gunther tried to offer her some food on the road and she kept refusing."

"No, no food allergies," Nash said. "She just has very… _specific_ tastes. As do I."

Daunte stared at him for a long moment. _Come to think of it, did Nash eat at all on the road? I didn't remember seeing Sierra eat, but I don't remember seeing Nash eat either!_

"We'll be all right," Nash reassured him. He reached out a hand and idly stroked Sierra's arm. "When my missus wakes up we'll go look for something safe to eat."

"…All right," Daunte said. Nash's statements left more questions than answers, but he didn't want to press the subject. "Have a good night."

"You, too."

Daunte left the room, and someone quickly caught his eye. The figure was sitting on the rail surrounding the arena. He hurried over to them. "Allise?"

"Ah, Daunte," Allise said, giving him a warm smile over her shoulder. "What are you doing up so late? We'll have a lot of work to do tomorrow."

"But you're up as well," Daunte said. He leaned his arms on the rail beside her.

"I've had a lot on my mind," Allise admitted, her smile slipping a little.

Daunte's eyes caught the Pale Gate Rune on her forehead. "Is it because of your Rune?" he asked before he could stop himself.

Allise flinched. She looked at him fully, and Daunte was relieved to see that she didn't look angry. "In a way. This Rune has done nothing but brought me pain."

"I-I'm sorry," Daunte said quickly.

"No, don't be sorry. You haven't hurt me in any way." Allise turned away then and rubbed at the Rune symbol on her forehead. "My father was a runemaster. A few years ago the Sheikh—that man, asked my parents to look for a Pale Gate Rune. So they went on an expedition that lasted for seven months. They went into every cave and ruin they could find in this country, but didn't find a single whole Rune. Their only option was to fight specific monsters who could drop pieces of this Rune. They finally killed enough monsters to get four pieces of the Rune and assembled them."

"So…Keha Hale asked them to find the Rune?" Daunte asked. "Then how did _you_ end up with it?"

"My parents came home, ready to deliver the Pale Gate Rune to that man. Except…" Allise flinched. "They found something out. That man wanted the Rune for a specific reason. The mayor of _Barakada_ , one of the towns in the southwest, had slighted him and he wanted to make an example of him. So after the Pale Gate Rune was attached to his head, he intended on using it to raze all the farmlands surrounding Barakada. Then, he intended to use it on the mayor himself. And his whole family."

Daunte gaped at her in horror. Allise shrugged stiffly. "By the time my parents found this out, they had already told that man that they had the Rune ready for him. So feeling that they had no other option…my father attached it to my head instead. Furthermore my father used a secret technique when attaching it to ensure that it couldn't be removed. I believe my parents thought that nothing would come of it. I was sixteen years old, just a child really, so they thought that man would drop the matter."

"But he didn't."

"No…he didn't. When he found out what my parents did, he had them arrested for treason. Per the law of Original Sin, _I_ was arrested as well. My parents were executed, and I was sentenced to the Dark Chasm."

"H-How did you end up married to him?" Daunte asked her. "If all he wanted from you was the Pale Gate Rune, then why didn't he execute you along with your parents? At his Garrison he seemed pretty intent on killing you."

"I honestly don't know why," Allise said softly. She ducked her head. "I was only at the Dark Chasm for three months, but during those three months I was constantly bombarded with runemasters and runemistresses trying to figure out how to get this Rune off my head. Nobody ever succeeded. After those three months the Sheikh suddenly showed up and announced that my penance had completed and I was free to go. The next thing I knew I was in the Grand Citadel being married to him. Married—to the man who killed my parents." She ducked her head so low that Daunte couldn't see her face. "I-It—the memory is a little fuzzy. I think I've been blocking it out or something. But I remember standing there feeling that man touch me, pinning a solid colored veil to my head and reciting marriage vows. I remember trying to run, but they caught me and dragged me back to the altar. I-I don't know why he insisted on marrying me. He didn't particularly like me and he's not…a kind man. Not at all.

"After that, he tried to use me as a living weapon. He wanted me to be a mindless tool who would use the Pale Gate Rune whenever he desired. I refused and he would…punish me for it. But I endured because I knew that if I gave in and did what he bid—that if I killed the people he told me to kill—that I would never be able to live with myself. I could never truly predict what he would do next. Some days he would have more runemasters trying to get the Rune off me, other days he would try to make me use it, and other days…" she shuddered. "That was my life for four years. Looking back on it I don't know how I didn't go mad."

"But you escaped him and divorced him," Daunte said. "What made you want to do that after living that nightmare for four years?"

"I found out that he…he'd had enough of me. I found out that he was going to have an assassin cut my head off and peel the Rune off my head. So I fled all the way to Mlkwt Alsmwat. I knew however that if I petitioned the Grand Citadel for a divorce that he would come after me, so I found a Cleric in the capital whose station was such that he could authorize a divorce without me having to go through the Cabinet of High Clerics. I got my divorce and I fled again, where…"

"Where Gunther kidnapped you?"

"Yes." She laughed for the first time. It was a warm sound. "It was the best possible thing that could happen for me. When he ambushed my carriage, all proud assertive, I practically hugged him. Not only did I find a way out of my marriage, but I could join an opposing Army and avenge my parents."

Allise sobered again. "The Theocracy ruined both of our lives, Daunte, and it's continuing to do so to countless people. We must stop them by any means necessary. And we must ensure that tyrants that Sloan Faakhir and—that man, pay for what they've done."

"I agree," Daunte said.

Allise smiled again and ruffled his short hair. "It's late. You should go off to be now."

Daunte could tell she didn't want to talk anymore, so he left her alone. Instead of returning to his room however, he went up the stairs towards the main hall. He paused however when he caught a familiar face at the opening of the corridor leading into the infirmary. "A-Ah, General Israfil?"

"Having trouble sleeping, Sir Daunte?" Israfil asked him. His arms were folded over his broad chest. "It's understandable. I imagine you've never participated in a campaign before, right?"

"R-Right," Daunte said.

"Just relax and follow the orders given to you. Your Lord Commander will give you the directions you need to advance."

"Okay." Daunte rubbed at his nape. "Will you be meeting up with Surya's father tomorrow?"

"Yes," Israfil said. "My purpose here is to find the royal family, and our Crowned Princess is the only one missing. I will go with the Queen's Knights and rescue her."

"What about—the royals already here." Daunte quickly caught himself. "Who will watch them?"

"Two Queen's Knights will stay behind with them. And Prince Surya is here. I'm certain I don't need to tell you of his skills. The fact that he became a Queen's Knight at his age is more of an indicator as any of his skills."

"I don't doubt it," Daunte said. "Surya's even better at fighting than I am."

"You're very skilled as well, Sir Daunte. I would recommend equipping a Boar Rune to your left hand. It will help with your hand-to-hand combat skills."

"I see." Daunte made a mental note of it. _I'll look for a Boar Rune the next time I visit a rune shop._

"Is there anything else I can assist you with?" Israfil asked him

Daunte looked at him and hesitated for a brief moment. It wasn't any of his business, and he was fearful that he would do more damage than good. Ultimately he couldn't stop himself from saying, "I saw something."

"Saw what?"

"My Rune." Daunte held up his right hand. "For some reason it allows me to see old memories. W-When I removed Lady Archana's Exploding Rune, I saw a memory of hers."

"Then you shouldn't be telling me such a thing," Israfil admonished him softly. "That would be an invasion of Lady Archana's privacy."

"It was her wedding reception," Daunte quickly reassured him.

"…Oh." Israfil was still tense though. "What did you see per chance?"

"I saw you," Daunte said, still using a soft tone. "You were watching Lady Archana and her husband. You…you looked happy."

"Of course I was happy," Israfil told him. "It was a happy occasion. Or at least it _was_ until Lady Archana and Lord Darrick were poisoned."

"Well…" Daunte rubbed at his nape awkwardly. _Maybe I shouldn't have said anything at all?_ He gathered the nerve to continue. "I-It just seems like you feel strongly for Lady Archana, so I was surprised to see you watching them and looking so happy."

It was Israfil's turn to look uncomfortable. He stepped closer to Daunte and spoke in a low voice. "Have you told her Ladyship about this?"

"No—"

"Then please don't. Please don't tell anyone else what you just told me."

"R-Right." Daunte bowed deeply. "I'm sorry for offending you."

"You haven't offended me, Sir Daunte. But you're correct in that I feel…strongly for Lady Archana." Israfil looked towards the infirmary. "I've harbored these feelings for her for a little over a decade or so. It must sound pathetic for a man my age to hang onto youthful infatuation like this, but…that is what it is."

"So you…even before she got married?"

"I had wanted to court her, but her eyes were for Lord Darrick and Lord Darrick only. It was a very bitter pill to swallow, and I was angry. I had never wanted anything in my life before meeting her, and yet when she looked at me she only saw the son of a faithful general, nothing more. It was difficult knowing that I had fallen for her so deeply, and I never even stood a chance."

"…What changed?" Daunte asked him.

"My father. As I said, experiencing unrequited love wasn't easy for me to deal with and it affected my mood considerably. My father finally sat down and talked with me and I told him everything. I'd never felt so embarrassed in my life, but he wanted the truth and I couldn't deny him. After hearing me out he gave me some advice. He told me to challenge myself and watch Lady Archana interact with Lord Darrick. He told me that if I truly loved her, then it wouldn't hurt to see them together and that I would embrace the love and happiness they felt. That if what I was feeling was true, then I shouldn't be so focused on what made _me_ happy, but rather what made _her_ happy."

"So what did you do?"

"I went to Sol-Falena, and happened upon them in the gardens of the royal palace. Lady Archana was decorating one of the fountains and Lord Darrick was helping her and then they both fell into the fountain." Israfil chuckled at the memory. "It was difficult seeing how happy she was with another man, but she was very happy with him. She smiled at him and looked at him in a way that she didn't smile or look at anyone else. I couldn't deny that he fulfilled something in her that no one else could, and that he was perfect for her. And while it hurt me that it wasn't _me_ who made her feel this way…in a way I was thrilled just to see how complete she was with him. It gave me the reassurance that she would be content, even if it wasn't with me."

 _But it wasn't to be. Someone poisoned their wedding cake and Darrick died._

"So if you saw me happy at her wedding reception, it's because I _was_ happy," Israfil finished. "I was happy for her that she found happiness, and I took no joy in the tragedy that occurred. Granted there were opportunists who tried to sweep in and comfort the grieving widow, and even now I cannot conceive why anyone would do such a thing. With how much she loved Lord Darrick it doesn't surprise me that Lady Archana would stay faithful to him even after all this time."

"…You are also not married though," Daunte pointed out quietly.

"Correct, but that has nothing to do with Lady Archana. Rather it does, but it's not because I'm holding out for her. I came to terms with the fact that she would not reciprocate my feelings, and I was content enough to feel happy for her relationship with Lord Darrick, but no matter what I do I cannot abandon these feelings I have. I have tried to and move on, but I cannot. How can I possibly marry someone else when I cannot let go of my youthful infatuation? It would be completely unfair to any wife I would take, and I could never put anyone through that. I've accepted my feelings are unrequited, but…I cannot will myself to let them go. So until I do, I won't wed myself to someone else."

Daunte himself had never experienced love like this so he didn't know how to relate to Israfil, but he did feel bad for the man. It had to be tough to be in love like that, knowing nothing would ever come of it, but being unable to move on from these feelings.

 _It's so strange, though. It was Archana's memory, so it was her experience. She was so focused on Darrick, yet I also noticed Israfil watching them. So…does that mean_ _ **Archana**_ _had also seen him watching them?_

But Daunte didn't dare say it out loud. "Thank you for sharing this with me," he said. "I know it's not any of my business, but thank you all the same."

Israfil glanced at him. "I trust you, Sir Daunte, and you have Prince Surya's confidence as well. You're easy to talk to and I know that you wouldn't gossip about such matters. But in any case, we should both retire for the night. We must rescue Princess Farrin tomorrow, and I don't believe the Sheikh will give her up without a fight.

 _He definitely won't give her up without a fight._ "Have a good night, General."

"You as well." Israfil saluted him and descended the stairs towards the barracks below.

Daunte however still wasn't tired. As he looked around the main hall he became aware of other doors and corridors he'd never explored before. One door was wide open and illuminated by moonlight. He decided to explore down this hallway. He found nothing of value however besides walls that had caved in. There wasn't any furniture about, either. He looked down at the stone floor and saw an aging blue carpet that 'crunched' beneath his feet.

 _I wonder how Bearyl Lutis found this place. This castle may be secure, but it's a bit dilapidated compared to the Army's previous headquarters._

"—squandering this."

Daunte paused at this sharp remark, and pressed himself against the wall. He slowly inched along the wall and peeked around the corner. He recognized the two people standing in front of an ornate window and quickly ducked back around the corner.

But he still listened.

"I'm not squandering anything, Caesar," Bearyl Lutis said. "I'm seeing an opportunity and I'm seizing it. This opportunity will not rise again."

"Do you think the opportunity to assist the Falenan's will rise again?" Caesar argued with him. "I understood your apprehension before because of the little knowledge we had about what Queen Lymsleia plans were, but now we _know_ what her plans are! We have several Queen's Knights assembled here, _and_ we know the Commander of the Queen's Knights has landed on the Northern Wharf! The Queen is not going to negotiate with the High Clerics for her children, so why would you not want to assist them in this matter?"

"Caesar, how is assisting them going to help us right this minute? We could divert our forces to rescuing Princess Farrin, but what would that mean? Sloan Faakhir will still go back to his Garrison, and he will try and take Zinnia back! Furthermore, we have no real guarantees that the Queen would give us help to fight! Once she has her children back and they go home, we would have no way to hold her to it! I can't afford to make unstable alliances we could not reap the rewards of until years down the road—if at all!"

"And do you honestly think the Queen would give this Army _any_ aid once she learns of how little we did to save her children and her nieces and nephew?!"

"I see no reason why she would have any complaints about my Army, considering the fact that my soldiers have saved her kin and I have given them safe haven."

"But both princes will most likely report to the Queen of _your_ lack of involvement in these matters!"

"I've already made my decision, Caesar, and we will march tomorrow. Is that understood?"

There was a long moment of silence, and Daunte held his breath while he waited for Caesar's answer. Finally the strategist said, "Of course, my Lord. We will move on your order."

"I'm glad we reached a consensus. Have a good night." Bearyl's footsteps quickly approached and Daunte flattened himself against the wall even more, praying that the Commander would not see him. Luckily Bearyl kept walking forward and did not turn down his corridor, and Daunte watched him round a corner and disappear out of sight.

"Damn it!" Caesar hissed, and Daunte heard a thud as he punched a table. Daunte wondered if he should leave the strategist alone or go to him and ask him if he was all right. After a moment he decided and turned the corner to see Caesar.

The strategist was standing before a small round table, rubbing at his knuckles. His head was bent over and he was frowning deeply. Daunte swallowed thickly and approached him. "L-Lord Caesar?"

Caesar started slightly, and straightened. He forced a lazy smile at Daunte. "Ah, it's you. Has anyone ever told you that eavesdropping is rude?"

Daunte flushed, and a denial immediately rose to his lips. He quickly debated if he should lie about listening in or fess up. Finally he said, "H-How did you know?"

"The fact that you approached me so quickly after Lord Bearyl left was a big enough clue." He slid his hands into his pockets. "How much did you hear?"

"A little," Daunte admitted. "B-But not enough to know what's going on."

"Well, since Sheikh Sloan Faakhir had departed his Garrison with Princess Farrin and his entire main unit, our Commander has decided that this is a perfect opportunity to launch a campaign and seize the Garrison for ourselves."

Daunte gaped at him for a long moment before he sputtered, "W-We…We're _not_ assisting the Queen's Knights?! But I thought we were getting ready to march with the Queen's Knights to the High Peak Mountains!"

"Not directly," Caesar said, his tone clipped. "We're instead focusing our efforts on gaining another stronghold in the northwest."

Daunte shook his head violently. "I-I…I don't understand this."

"This is the wish of our Commander, and we must abide it."

"But what about Princess Farrin? She's the heir to the throne of Falena! The Queen's Knights alone don't have enough strength to take on Sloan Faakhir's main unit! And this is Surya's cousin, the Queen's daughter! The Queen will know that we didn't help them in any way!"

"All valid points, but you're wasting your breath. Our Commander has made his decision, and we serve him. We must obey his orders."

"But aren't you his strategist?! Can't you tell him what he's doing is wrong?"

"Didn't you hear me tell him what I thought of his plan?" Caesar wrung a hand through his hair. "Lord Bearyl has legitimate concerns about reaching out to Falena for an alliance. There is a degree of uncertainty reaching out to a nation that has a hostile history with Nagarea. But at this stage of the game we need strong allies, and…" he shook his head. "I'm saying too much. Don't listen to me."

Daunte frowned. "If you want this alliance with Falena, then why have you always sided with Lord Bearyl when he's denied aid to Surya? You almost look two-faced when you talk out of both sides of your mouth like that."

Caesar laughed at that remark. "You say exactly what's on your mind, don't you?" he sobered up quickly. "But to answer your question, I agreed with Lord Bearyl because that is what is expected of me."

"Expected?"

"A strategist can always disagree with their commander in private, but in public they must always support any and all decisions they make. So no matter what Lord Bearyl says in front of our soldiers or foreign dignitaries, I must always agree with him. If I don't agree with him, then that gives the impression of instability at the top of the power chain. That kind of instability will negatively affect morale amongst our troops, and it will also show disunity among potential allies. And potential allies who play their cards right would _never_ ally with an Army if the commander and strategist are not unified."

"…Oh," Daunte said softly. Truthfully he'd been irritated with how Caesar had appeared to be a yes-man for Bearyl, despite the commander's questionable decisions. But with this new bit of information, it made him see Caesar in a different light. _So even if he personally disagrees with his Lord, once the Lord decides something he must follow through and support him anyways? That has to be tough._

"Bearyl Lutis is many things," Caesar said suddenly. He stepped closer to Daunte and lowered his voice. "He has vast knowledge about the Theocracy and he has amazing charisma one would expect from a former Cleric. In terms of war strategy, however…he is severely lacking. More so he is thin-skinned and prideful. While knowledge and charisma are great attributes to a good leader…these flaws are not."

He smiled and patted Daunte on the shoulder. "Get some rest. It's going to be a long day tomorrow." Then he walked away and disappeared down the corridor. Daunte watched him leave, at a loss for words. Finally he shook his head and turned back around to head back to his room.

 _I thought we were assisting the Falenans, but instead we're seizing Sloan Faakhir's Garrison in his absence? Then what's going to happen to the Falenans when they meet with the Sheikh's main military unit? Moreover, what's going to happen to US when the main military unit comes back to reclaim the Garrison? I don't like this at all._

* * *

The Falenans were already gone by the time Daunte woke up. He quickly got ready and yanked on his armor, but his heart was pounding in his throat. He had a sick feeling in his gut that he couldn't shake off.

 _This isn't right. There will be plenty of opportunities to take over Sloan Faakhir's Garrison. This will probably be our only chance to help the Falenans, and yet we're not._

"Daunte, please be careful." Arin no longer looked excited over the potential of battle. The boy now looked frightened. "Don't get yourself killed out there, okay?"

Daunte paused in pulling on his armor. He knew he could put up a front and be brave in front of Arin, or he could voice the very real fears he was feeling. But he didn't want to frighten his little brother, so he forced a smile and ruffled his hair. "There's nothing to worry about. With my True Rune I won't fall so easily. I'll be back before you know it."

His feigned confidence did help Arin relax, but the boy still surged forward and hugged him tight. "Mom and Dad will keep you safe, I just know it. But please don't get hurt. _Please_."

"It'll be all right, Arin." Daunte returned the hug but he closed his eyes. _Please watch over me, Mom. And please…please let nothing happen to the Falenans!_

Shortly thereafter, Daunte met up with Felicity and Roen in the main hall. Heavily-armed soldiers were grouped in clusters around them, and their conversations did nothing to reassure Daunte.

"Marching on the Garrison—"

"—not going to the High Peak Mountains?"

"Is Lord Bearyl out of his mind?!"

"—don't owe the Falenans anything—"

"But this is the _future Queen_ we're talking about!"

"—waste, such a stupid _waste_ —"

"Unbelievable," Roen fumed, though he kept his voice down. "We're seizing a minimally defended Garrison instead of rescuing Surya's cousin! Is Bearyl Lutis an idiot?!"

"Roen, keep your voice down!" Felicity hissed at him.

"I told you this was a bad idea!" Roen rasped quietly. "I told you joining the Liberation Army was a mistake! _Now_ look at our mess! We're stuck following the selfish whims of a leader who is too stupid to take the opportunity for an alliance! Or was this the work of his strategist?!"

"A-Actually, Lord Caesar opposed this campaign," Daunte quickly chimed in, just as quietly. "But Lord Bearyl couldn't be sway so he gave in."

Felicity groaned, and rubbed at her forehead. "This isn't the same as conquering a town! Even if we actually succeed at grabbing that bastard's Garrison, how long will we actually be able to _hold_ it?! The other three Sheikh's will raise their banners and march upon us to take it back! _I've_ never fought on a battlefield and I understand this!"

"Does Surya know?" Daunte asked softly.

"Yeah," Roen said grimly. "They all do. I wouldn't approach any of them if I were you, they're _all_ in bad moods right now."

"Attention!"

The entire assembly fell silent and turned towards the stairs. Bearyl Lutis was coming down the stairs, also suited in armor. Caesar, Varnaz, Gunther, Allise, and Lorik all followed him. "We will begin the march shortly. Caesar will give a quick explanation of our campaign." Bearyl stepped aside and gestured to Caesar to step forward.

The young strategist stood front and center. He revealed nothing on his face. "We're going to march upon Sloan Faakhir's Garrison. Our scouts have confirmed that the fortress has the bare minimum security, so this is a…opportune time to take it over. We're going to split our forces into seven units. You will get your assigned unit once we're within range to begin our siege, and your unit will also be given its marching orders at that time. Does everyone understand?"

"Yes, sir!" the entire assembly shouted back.

"Good!" Caesar smiled at them. "Then let's move out and seize ourselves a Garrison!"

Soldiers around Daunte erupted in cheers, but Daunte couldn't bring himself to join in. He simply nodded at Roen and Felicity and grabbed their hands. "Be careful out there."

"You, too," Felicity said.

"I'm not at all worried about you," Roen said. "That True Rune on your hand will protect you. But we should watch each other's back in any case."

* * *

They reached their destination quickly and set up camp. Daunte found himself standing in a tiny tent with Roen and Felicity, the three of them shrugging on armor. The closer they got to the Sheikh's Garrison, the more worried Daunte became. His mind kept wandering back to the Falenans who had gone into the mountains and he bit his bottom lip. _There's nothing I can do for them now. All I can do is hope they succeed._

"The three of you have never fought in a war campaign, have you?"

Daunte looked up from fixing his armor. He was surprised to see Varnaz standing at the tent's flap watching Roen, Felicity, and him. The Lieutenant General had a stern look of disapproval, but he came further into the tent to address them. "Fighting in a war campaign is very different from your standard hand-to-hand combat fights. The stakes are much higher as well. Whereas if you fall in a fight with a foe in standard combat, your injuries are generally tended to immediately if there is someone there to treat them. A war campaign is different. If your unit falls, then you have the chance of being seriously injured. Your chances of dying are also great. So if you fall on the battlefield in a war campaign, there is no coming back from it. Do the three of you understand?"

"Yes, sir," Daunte said. Roen and Felicity chimed in in kind.

"Our forces have been divided into five units; two cavalry, two infantry, and one rune archer unit. The three of you will be part of an infantry unit that does not have a commanding officer. Lord Caesar has recommend that _you_." He gestured to Daunte. "Be the commanding officer of the unit."

" _Me_?!" Daunte sputtered, pointing to himself.

"I have no idea why," Varnaz said sharply. "You are a boy with no military training, and there are soldiers in this unit far more qualified than you to take command. But it was the wish of the Army strategist, and Lord Bearyl agreed. You should count yourself lucky that we are seizing a Garrison lacking its usual manpower and not taking on a full-fledged Army. Otherwise there would be no way we could fulfill Lord Caesar's request with this."

Daunte gaped at Roen and Felicity, who looked equally shocked. A spike of panic shook through Daunte. _I'M leading a military unit? But why? This is my very first battle!_

"As commanding officer of your unit, you're to come with me and receive your marching orders," Varnaz said. "You will then relay them to your unit." He nodded his head towards the tent flap. "Let's go."

 _I-I don't even have an option to refuse this? Don't they want to win this battle? How can they possibly win this battle if they assign a completely inexperienced teenager to lead a unit?!_

Daunte looked at Roen and Felicity once more, and then looked at Varnaz. There were so many things he wanted to say in that moment but couldn't find the words. Finally he ducked his head and followed Varnaz out of the tent.

Varnaz spoke no more words to him as he quickly walked towards the largest tent in camp. All around them soldiers were getting prepared for the battle and Daunte anxiety only grew with each step. _What am I supposed to be doing? I have the lives of an entire unit in my hands! If I screw up then they all will die!_

"Ah, you're just in time!" Caesar called out to them as they entered the tent. Bearyl Lutis, Gunther, Allise, Lorik Varra and Tala, and he were standing at a large table in the center of the tent. "Don't look so anxious, Daunte," Caesar directed at him. "We have this all carefully planned out. If you follow _exactly_ what I tell you to do, then you'll be fine.

"Our scouts have indicated that the three units guarding the Garrison comprise of an infantry unit, a cavalry unit, and an archer unit," Bearyl began. "The infantry and cavalry units are stationed at the front entrance of the Garrison." He pointed to the two figurines on the map. "And the archer unit is on the walls of the Garrison itself." He pointed to the one figurine directly over the symbol of the Garrison on the map. "Allise, you're our rune archer unit. I wanted to keep a steady focus on these archers and quickly use your Pale Gate Rune. With the archers gone then we can storm the Garrison quicker and we won't have to worry about any raining arrows from above."

"Consider it done," Allise said. "However, I must warn you that my unit is of equal strength as the enemy archer unit. I may not be able to take them all out with the two uses I have with my Rune."

"It will still strike a decisive blow against the archers, and then while we move in you can focus on the cavalry unit."

"With all due respect, my Lord," Gunther said. "Shouldn't we have Allise focus _primarily_ on the cavalry unit? Rune archer units are superior to cavalry units and so she would be able to wipe out that entire unit with possibly just _one_ use of her Rune."

"No, we must take out those archers first," Bearyl said. "Our two cavalry units, led by Varnaz and myself, will focus on the one cavalry unit. Gunther, Lord Lorik and you shall comprise one of the infantry units and focus on the other infantry unit."

"If I may add something, my Lord," Caesar said. "While it is practical for our cavalry and infantry units to focus on their respective enemies units, pitting units of equal strength against each other will prolong the battle and may cost us more lives."

"We'll be all right," Bearyl insisted. "We outnumber the enemy forces five to three. So long as the Sheikh's main forces occupy themselves with the princess from Falena, we'll be able to seize the fortress."

Daunte hesitantly raised his hand. "L-Lord Bearyl. What shall I do?"

"Ah, yes," Caesar said. He reached under the table and plopped a rolled-up tapestry on the table. "While we take out the Sheikh's forces, your job is to storm the Garrison itself and raise the flag in victory. We'll carve an opening through the Garrison forces for you."

"Hold on a moment," Tala suddenly spoke up. It was the first time Daunte ever heard her voice. "Unless I'm mistaken, am I to understand that my Lordship's unit will be taking on a unit _alone_?!"

"One infantry unit can handle another infantry unit," Bearyl told her. "Especially with Lieutenant Gunther leading it."

"You're directing two units to attack the cavalry unit," Tala shot back. Lorik tried to quietly pacify her, but the young woman shook him off. " _Three_ if you account for the fact that Lady Allise's unit will be coming back to assist yours, my Lord. Why not have Lady Allise's unit join my Lord's unit after she disables the archers?"

"Rune archer units, and _archer_ units in general, are inferior to infantry units and can be disabled by them quickly," Varnaz told her. "We would risk Lady Allise and the lives of 100 soldiers serving under us if we send her after your unit."

"What about risking the life of my Lord?! Or your Lieutenant?! Or the 100 people serving in that unit?!"

"Tala, please," Lorik said softly.

"I'm not afraid to assist Gunther's unit," Allise suddenly chimed in. "If my unit keeps its distance, and Gunther keeps them occupied, then my unit should be able to handle them despite our natural handicap."

"You will do as commanded," Bearyl said. "Disable the archers and then come back and assist Varnaz and I in dispatching the cavalry unit. After we do so, _then_ we will turn and give aid to Gunther's unit."

"I'm honored, my Lord," Gunther said. "You must trust me if you give me so much independence on the battlefield."

"Excuse me," Daunte said quietly. "But I don't understand most of what's going on."

"Battlefield fighting is very rudimentary," Caesar told him. "There are units that serve different functions, such as infantry, cavalry, and archers. Infantry is naturally stronger than archers but weaker than cavalry, cavalry is likewise stronger than infantry but weaker than archers, and archers are thus stronger than cavalry but weak to infantry. You can design any sort of battle system based upon what units you have and what the enemy units are."

"I-If my unit is infantry, and infantry is superior to archers, when maybe _my_ unit should fight the archers?" Daunte asked. Bearyl frowned in disapproval at him so he focused on Caesar. "A-After all, my unit's task is to storm the Garrison anyway. We'll encounter the archers no matter what so maybe my unit should take them out so _your_ units can focus on the cavalry and infantry units?"

"And allow a teenage boy to lead my soldiers to their deaths?" Bearyl said darkly. "I don't think so. You'll do as commanded and wait for our signal to march upon the fortress. Your job is to raise our flag in victory. Nothing more."

Daunte gaped at him for a long moment. _He…He doesn't trust me to lead his units? Then why am I leading at all?_

"It's decided," Caesar said. "Go gather your units and get ready to march to victory!"

Everyone quickly departed the tent. Daunte turned to go, but Caesar grabbed his arm and stilled him. Daunte looked at him, but the strategist was watching the tent flap carefully. Once he was sure they were alone he spoke. "If you want to engage the archers, then I'll give you permission to. And I'll tell Lord Bearyl such. But don't do anything reckless that will endanger the lives of the soldiers in your unit."

Daunte quickly nodded. "I-I understand."

* * *

Seizing Sloan Faakhir's Garrison

Garrison Forces: 300

Liberation Army Forces: 500

Victory: Seize the Garrison and raise the flag of the Liberation Army

Failure: Daunte's unit falls

Daunte stood before the 100 people serving in his unit. His stomach was doing flip-flop as all 100 of them stared back at him expectantly. Many of the soldiers were much older than him and had the hardened, seasoned look of a veteran. Daunte swallowed thickly, but he kept his chin high.

When he finally gathered the nerve to speak, he surprised himself by keeping his voice steady. "We have the flag. Our job is to hold the line and wait for the other units to carve a path for us, then we will seize the Garrison."

"We're not participating in the battle?!" one soldier demanded. "Not at all?!"

"Caesar gave us permission to attack the archer unit if necessary, but our orders are to leave the archers to Allise—"

"But wouldn't Lady Allise's unit be better suited to fight the cavalry unit?" another interjected. " _We're_ infantry! We should be taking care of the archers!"

Daunte didn't expect the soldiers to be so… _verbal_ in their disapproval of Bearyl Lutis's tactics, but it did make him feel better that he wasn't alone in thinking that the overall strategy wasn't very practical.

Although he was even more shocked that the soldiers weren't openly voicing their disapproval about a teenager leading their unit. "These are the orders given to us. So while the other four units focus on beating the enemy units, we must figure out a way to get into the Garrison as quickly as possible."

"We could scale the walls at the southern side," another soldier stated. "Once our other units start advancing, the archers will be too preoccupied with them to focus on us."

But it still didn't sit well with Daunte that the other units were essentially serving as bait while they snuck in. He looked at Roen and Felicity, and had a sudden idea. "Roen, how much range do you estimate your Fire Rune to have?"

"If we get close enough to the archers, then I can try focusing a single blast on them," Roen said. "But with the amount of power and concentration it'll cost me, I think I'll only be able to pull it off once."

"Right," Daunte said. He turned back to the unit. "Allise will be focusing her Pale Gate Rune on the archers. From what it sounds like, she'll only be able to use it twice. What we'll need to do is move stealthily but quickly towards the southern part of the Garrison. We'll need to get into range either before or immediately after Allise uses her Pale Gate Rune. At that time, Roen will use his Fire Rune on the archers. Whatever is left over we'll be able to easily dispatch on our."

"And that way, Lady Allise will still have one more use of her Pale Gate Rune to use on either the cavalry or the infantry," another soldier piqued up. "That's a great idea!"

"If we're going with that then we need to move now," Felicity said, looking over her shoulder. "It looks like the other units are already marching on the Garrison."

"Everyone, please stay together!" Daunte called out. "Whatever injuries we may sustain during the battle I will try to heal with my Rune! But if we spread out too far my Rune might not be able to reach you! Let's go and take this Garrison!"

Cheers rose from the soldiers and they quickly mobilized to rush into position. Daunte saw the other units on the move and he picked up the pace. _We need to get there before Allise uses her Pale Gate Rune!_

Within less than an hour he caught sight of Sloan Faakhir's Garrison. Even without the man being there, Daunte felt uneasy being so close to his headquarters. He shook off the feeling though and continued to move.

They were rounding the outer edges of the Garrison, easily four kilometers away from it, when a loud alarm bell sounded from the Garrison. Daunte's heart leapt into his throat and he signaled to his unit. "Take cover!"

There was no trees or brush to take cover in, so the soldiers had no choice but to duck behind their shields as the snapping of multiple bows filled the air. Daunte dared a glance around his shield and paused. He saw a barrage of dozens of arrows flying through the air, but none of them were flying in their direction. The relief was very brief though, as he saw the arrows hit their mark on Bearyl Lutis's main unit.

 _They don't see us, but we still have to hurry!_

"Move!" Daunte shouted. They quickly climbed to their feet and ran as fast as they could towards the southern walls. War cries reverberated from inside the Garrison's walls, and Daunte saw the cavalry unit charge out the main gates to do combat with Varnaz's group.

"Oh!" Felicity exclaimed, watching the fierce combat in horror.

"We're almost there, let's move!" Daunte encouraged the soldiers. Indeed, the Garrison was so focused on the four units attacking from the front that they did not notice Daunte's unit charging from the back. They were six meters from the southern wall when they sky above the Garrison turned black. Allise was using her Pale Gate Rune!

"Roen, are we within range?" Daunte shouted to his friend.

But Roen shook his head. "I-I need to get closer! I'll barely singe the foundations from this distance!"

"Get up on the wall! Hurry before Allise casts another spell!"

Soldiers were securing rope to scale the walls, but several others were hoisting Roen up and bodily shoving him up onto the wall. Allise's spell finished and Daunte saw that just a little over a half of the archer unit remained. Roen ran as fast as he could to one of the wall's towers, just as a guard saw him. "Intrud—HUCK!" he began to shout before Felicity's well-aimed throwing knife silenced him. "Roen, _hurry_!"

"I don't know if I'm close enough!" Roen shouted back down to them.

"We're out of time! Use your Fire Rune now!" Daunte shouted back at him.

"A-All right!" Roen raised his hand. " _Flaming Arrows_!"

It was much larger than the spell usually was. Bright red beams of light rained down upon the Garrison, striking the archers on the walls. Several portions of the building caught fire, but the arrows met their marks. When the spell finished, Daunte counted just a little over twenty archers left.

"Storm the Garrison! Take out the archers!" Daunte shouted, shrugging the Liberation Army's rolled up flag higher onto his back.

With most of the soldiers outside the gates, they met little resistance as they stormed the fortress. All that had remained behind were two dozen guards and the archer unit. But the enemy was severely outnumbered by Daunte's unit, who quickly took them down. Less than ten minutes later most the soldiers and archers lay dead, or had surrendered.

Daunte looked around, and saw that some of the soldiers were injured, but none were dead. He raced up to the top floor with Roen and Felicity and several other soldiers, seeking out the flagpole at the top. Daunte looked out a window and was unable to see the battlefield. But he saw the sky go dark once more, indicating that Allise had used her Pale Gate Rune again. _And she didn't have to waste it on the archers._

After climbing several flights of stairs they finally reached the roof of the Garrison, where the flag of Nagarea was whipping around in the wind. Down below Daunte heard the sounds of battle, and he saw a massive dark wave of bodies fighting furiously. They all blended together; he couldn't tell ally from foe.

The soldiers quickly brought down the Garrison's flag, though they still folded it respectfully as Daunte and Felicity tied the Liberation Army flag to the pole and quickly raised it up. The flag was dark blue, unlike the white Theocratic flag, and it similarly whipped around in the wind. Seconds later, cheers rose from the ground. Daunte still saw fighting down below however, and raised his hand. " _Howl_." The glowing golden-green of the True Rune enveloped the Garrison and the surrounding area, and he felt re-energized. He hoped his allies felt the same.

Daunte was still shaking, even as the unit under his command cheered in victory. He'd thought living in fear for both his life and Arin's life in the Dark Chasm was bad—the pure chaos of a battlefield was something completely different. As the leader of his unit he was responsible for the lives of 100 men, and the concerns for their safety was like a great weight over him.

But…but there was something exhilarating about the battlefield. He didn't take pleasure in killing people, but being the guiding hand of all these people—even if it was just one unit—and knowing that not one of them died under his command, was strangely _fulfilling_.

 _It's weird. I was so scared going into this because I was facing seasonally trained soldiers. But this was a victory. I led these people to victory._

"You did it, Daunte!" Felicity shouted, throwing her arms around his shoulders. " _We_ did it! Not only did our unit raise the flag in the Sheikh Garrison, but our entire unit is intact! This is all because of you!"

"I've never fought like a real soldier before," Roen said, his tone also a little shaky. "But when you took charge, all the fear I was feeling just disappeared! I felt confident we would succeed, and we did!"

Daunte suddenly found himself hoisted onto the shoulders of two soldiers and everyone around him cheered. He laughed reflexively, and smiled at the hope in their faces. They'd won. It was a good feeling.

* * *

Less than an hour later, Bearyl Lutis had secured the Garrison and they were quickly making use of the space. Daunte was curious about Sloan Faakhir's private living quarters. They were, after all, also the private living quarters of his family.

 _Is it still the same as when Tidur and her daughters left? Or did he get rid of any traces of their being there?_

He didn't have time to dwell on these thoughts however, as a familiar voice suddenly startled. "Congratulations on your victory."

Daunte looked over his shoulder at Nash. The man had a knack for just appearing out of nowhere. "Is Sierra feeling better?"

"Much better," Nash said, approaching him. "But I've come here to bring you urgent matters."

"Urgent?" Felicity asked. "Is it about the Falenans?" Daunte felt sick to his stomach. The battle had distracted him, and he'd completely forgotten about the missing princess.

"It most certainly does," Nash said. "Prince Surya was positively _furious_ that the Liberation Army elected to seize the Sheikh's Garrison and not provide any aid to his countrymen. He left the headquarters with his bodyguard to go to the High Peak Mountains."

"He _left_?!" Roen exclaimed. "But he was given explicit orders from his father to stay put!"

"People tend to act irrationally when they're angry," Nash said.

"But didn't the Queen's Knights at headquarters try to stop him?!" Felicity demanded.

"I'm sure they did, but what could they do? It was only two of them. They're responsible for the other four royals there, so it wasn't like they could just leave and stop Prince Surya."

"We have to go after them," Daunte said. "We should be helping them!"

"But you're currently in command of a military unit," Nash pointed out. "I don't think Lord Bearyl will give you permission to leave."

Daunte glanced around, and quickly recognized a soldier serving under his command. "You, there!"

"Y-Yes, sir?" the man asked.

"I'm here by deferring command of our unit to you. Please inform Lord Bearyl that we had to leave for an emergency."

"Leave?! Where are you going?!"

Daunte bit down hard on his bottom. "Somewhere we all should've gone to."


	13. Chapter One: Part Thirteen

I came down with a head cold a couple weeks ago, not at all helped by my lack of air conditioning. I apologize for the delay but I hope you enjoy this chapter.

* * *

Part Thirteen

It was easier than Daunte expected to slip away from Sloan Faakhir's Garrison. He was relieved to find a merchant selling supplies in the exterior of the Garrison, and he wondered if this merchant had always been there, or if they were an opportunist. But he ultimately couldn't complain about the healing items he'd received.

"Depending on where the mountains are located, we might not be able to catch up to the prince in time," Nash told them as they quickly saddled horses. "Though if _we're_ closer to the mountain range than the prince, we might beat them there."

"We're closer," Daunte said, steering his horse northward. "I overhead Lord Bearyl say that the mountains are about four hours away from us, whereas they're almost nine hours away from the headquarters."

"Are you coming with us?" Felicity asked Nash.

"Of course," Nash said, smiling at her. "I couldn't very well leave three teenagers to clean up the messes of adults, could I?"

"…Your wife made you come here, didn't she?" Roen asked.

Nash twitched, but held onto his smile. "Let's be on our way."

The four of them made excellent time riding for the High Peak Mountains, and met minimal distractions from monsters on the open plains. Daunte wondered if luck was on their side, or if the wildlife of the area had been dispatched by both the Sheikh's forces and the Queen's Knights.

 _Let's hope we can find Surya and Mokuren before they run into trouble._

Night had fallen by the time they reached the base of High Peak Mountains, and the group decided to make camp until the following morning. It wouldn't have been safe to navigate the mountains at night, but this fact only made Daunte more nervous for the Falenans. As the hours ticked by he couldn't help but feel that they were wasting their time. After all, only a handful of Queen's Knights would be facing an insane Sheikh and his main military unit. How would they fare out?

 _Well, worrying about it won't help matters. We'll just have to move quickly._

The dirt path on High Peak Mountains was too steep and narrow to navigate the horses on, so the group was forced to leave the horses at the base. Daunte knew that the horses may very well run off by the time they came back down, but it was better to leave them than to risk their health on the mountain. But even while on foot, navigating the mountain proved to be perilous. There were many wild animals on the mountain, from the usual wild boars to harpy's and giant rabid birds. Not to mention the fact that the dirt road kept branching off in random directions, and these random directions often led to dead ends. Sometimes the dead ends led to a lone treasure chest, but more often than not it just led to a den of monsters.

At one particular dead end though, Daunte found a treasure chest weeded over and covered in moss. Felicity used one of her knives to break the lock on it and it popped open. Daunte was surprised to see a small box inside that was lighter in color. He propped it in his lap, and quickly noted words stamped onto the lid. "… _'Sound set 2'_?"

"Sound set?" Roen asked, frowning. "What's a sound set?"

"It worthless unless you have a Sound Rune," Nash told them. "I don't know exactly how it works, but sound sets only work with a Sound Rune."

"Oh!" Daunte exclaimed, standing up. He looked at Roen. "That woman in the Great Cistern! She had a Sound Rune!"

"Oh, her!" Roen gasped. "She said she was looking for a Sound Rune, right? What was her name again?"

"Liron, I think." Daunte looked down at the sound set. "So this is what she needed?"

"Let's worry about giving this away another time," Nash interrupted. "We still have a lot of ground to cover."

"Yeah," Felicity said, rubbing at her arms. "I hope we find Surya soon."

They continued on their way, dodging monsters and trying to find any clues to indicate the direction Surya and the other Queen's Knights went in. It was very strange, though. Despite the fact that a military unit and Queen's Knights had undoubtedly traveled the area, the area remained relatively undisturbed. It made tracking even harder.

"STOP!"

At this shout the group froze in their tracks. Daunte felt a brief swell of dread inside him as the sound of flapping wings rattled in his ears. From the trees around them, several humanoid bodies emerged. The four of them were quickly surrounded by a dozen forms, all of them armed. Daunte looked at the figure in front of him and gaped.

"Drop your weapons, humans!" the person shouted, pointing a spear at Daunte. Their new acquaintances looked human in appearance, but their clothes were either tattered or made of leather hides. Daunte looked down at their feet and saw massively clawed toes digging into the dirt.

But it wasn't the feet that truly gathered Daunte's attention, however. It was the wings spurting from their backs.

"The High Peak Mountains belong to the Wingers," the person seethed, glaring at Daunte with silver eyes. He looked only a couple years older than Daunte, but Daunte wasn't certain if this Winger was really around his own age. Reddish brown hair was shaggy on the Winger's head, and his bangs fell long into his face and down his cheeks. "You are trespassing. You will leave this instant, or you will die!"

"Oh, I didn't know there was an indigenous clan of Wingers in Nagarea," Nash said softly.

"You will leave this mountain this instant!" the Winger hollered back at them, pushing his spear closer to Daunte.

"W-Wait a moment, please," Daunte said, raising his hands. "We're not here to disturb anything. We're here looking for the humans that have come up here. Once we find them we will leave. I promise."

"What should we do, Oisin?" another Winger asked the apparent leader. "Those other humans _did_ give us more trouble than these four are giving us."

Oisin continued to glare at Daunte for several long moments of silence. Finally he drew his spear away and pointed towards a narrow path to the east. "The other humans went that way. We will watch you from a distance. You will find the other humans and leave the mountains. If you do not leave, then we will attack."

"Look, a Sheikh kidnapped a Falenan princess!" Roen told him harshly. "Once we find the princess, _then_ we will leave!"

"Sheikh. Princess. These titles mean nothing to us. You will find your kind and you will leave." Oisin's upper lip rose in a snarl. "We will not tell you again." The moments the words left his mouth his beat his wings and rose into the sky. The other Wingers followed and they all flew off into different directions. The echo of their beating wings gradually faded as they disappeared out of sight until there was nothing but silence around them.

 _But they're probably not gone. Oisin said he would watch us from a distance._

"They don't like humans, I see," Felicity said. She huffed. "Demanding without actually asking anything of us."

"Humans have not been known to be kind to other races," Nash said.

"They're not the only ones who have suffered at the hands of humans," Felicity grumbled.

"At least we know the direction they've gone in," Daunte said, looking at the others. "Let's hurry."

* * *

Despite Oisin's hostile demeanor, the Winger had provided them the correct directions in tracking the Falenans and the Sheikh's forces. One hour later Daunte caught sight of two familiar faces lying flat on their bellies looking over the side of a cliff. Daunte did not want to approach them however as to not startle them. Two meters away from them he slowly knelt down, and the others in his group followed in kind. "Surya," he called out softly.

The Falenan Prince whipped out his tri-nunchaku and stood, and Mokuren similarly raised her naginata. They both relaxed however when they saw Daunte. "You're here?!" they hurried over to them. "What happened at the Garrison?"

"We were victorious," Daunte said. "But this is more important. What has happened so far?"

"We got lost on the mountain," Surya said grimly. "And we ran afoul of some Wingers, and they only served to slow us down. Right now we're scouting the area. It looks like my father's forces are advancing on the Sheikh's forces. Fortunately for us—and _unfortunately_ for you guys—the Sheikh found out about the siege on his Garrison and sent the majority of his unit back to reclaim it. So that just leave the Sheikh and roughly thirty soldiers inside the mountain for us to deal with."

"What's inside the mountain?" Mokuren asked.

"It used to be a mine that was abandoned," Daunte said.

"Maybe _that's_ where the Winger's hostility stems from?" Nash wondered aloud.

"But the Liberation Army will be ambushed by the forces!" Felicity said. She looked over her shoulder. "They must be long gone by now—they've probably reached the Garrison by now!"

"They should be fine," Surya said curtly. "They might not be able to maintain their hold on the Garrison, however. But their departure should make getting Farrin back that much easier." He grinned. "And unless I'm mistaken, we're about to thin those numbers out even more."

"How so?" Roen asked, but his question was immediately followed by a shriek of terror below. A large chorus of shrieks followed, and Daunte rushed to the cliff's edge to see what was going on below. What he saw caused a spike of panic to quickly rush through him and he fell backwards onto his backside.

" _Run_! The demons will devour you!"

Down below, over a dozen of the Sheikh's forces were running in all directions in panicked terror. They didn't even try drawing their weapons. They were too frightened of the four creatures standing in clearing.

"D- _Dragon horses_!" Felicity exclaimed. She slapped both of her hands over her mouth.

"O-Oh no," Roen stammered, shaking his head violently. "This is a bad omen! Those demons will kill us!"

"Aww, they're adorable!" Nash laughed, folding his arms over his chest.

"What's wrong?" Mokuren asked, looking at Daunte and the others. "You all look like you've seen a ghost!"

"Dragon horses are demonic!" Roen hissed at her. "They'll feast upon our flesh, and if we're eaten by them then our spirits will be damned!"

"I didn't realize the dragon horses would scare _you_ guys too," Surya said apologetically. "We in Falena know the Nagarist Religion teaches that dragon horses are demonic in nature. We've heard rumors that Nagarean dragon horses became extinct because of this belief system. My father probably made the arrangements to bring the dragon horses here for intimidation purposes. To make it easier for us to rescue Farrin."

"You guys have nothing to worry about," Mokuren told them. "Unless they see you as an enemy, these dragon horses are tame." She laughed heartily. "They're actually quite cuddly!"

Daunte shook himself off and stood up. He was embarrassed by his reaction, but he couldn't help but be naturally afraid of the dragon horses. His mother even had taught him that they were demonic beasts. But he knew Surya wouldn't lie to him about the dragon horses being their allies.

 _I just have to remain calm and get over this fear._

"It looks like the soldiers are gone," Surya said. Indeed, the screaming had dissipated. "Let's go down and meet the knights."

They scaled down the narrow path of the short cliff to reach the clearing below. A man in his forties with red hair was standing to command over the other three knights. "That's the rest of them! Now all that remains are the soldiers inside the mountain! We'll meet up with Commander Freyjadour to rescue the princess!"

"Nick," Surya said, greeting the man in question as they reached the clearing. "How are things faring?"

Nick quickly spun around. "P-Prince Surya?!" he saluted the prince, as did the other knights. "Correct me if I'm wrong, but weren't you given orders to secure the other royals and remain with them?"

Surya shrugged. "What about it?"

To Daunte's surprise, Nick grinned. "Well, we're glad to see you in any case."

Seeing the dragon horses up close and personal was a surreal experience to Daunte. The horses were vibrant colors, and they were saddled up like regular horses. They smelled like pond water though, and each twitch on their body made Daunte flinch slightly. Roen and Felicity were faring no better, however.

"We traveled here with Commander Freyjadour and found the enemy's forces on this mountain," Nick told Surya. "We've been very lucky thus far. The enemy received word that their base was seized in their absence, so _their_ commander was forced to send the majority of his troops back to reclaim the base. Thus far, our mere presence alone has been enough to scare off many other soldiers. The rest are inside, but it's estimated that less than ten enemy soldiers remain."

"Is my father inside?" Surya asked, gesturing to the mine's entrance on a hill above them.

"At the Commander's insistence, he went ahead in first to scout," Nick said. "But when he didn't return, the remaining Queen's Knights went in after him. We've been dispersing the enemy soldiers in the meantime."

"And have you received any further word since then?"

"I'm afraid not. The Knight Commander gave me orders to make sure this area remained secure, and so I've held position. It's necessary that we ensure that the remaining forces don't return, and we obviously don't want anything to happen to our dragon horses."

"We'll go inside and find out what's going on." Surya looked at the others. "Are you guys ready?"

"Yes, please," Felicity said hastily. She shrieked with alarm when a purple dragon horse playfully thrusted its nose into her neck and made a _purring_ sound.

"Ax, _behave_!" Nick commanded sharply. Ax didn't seem to hear his master though, and kept nudging Felicity. Nick sighed in exasperation. "Well young lady, it looks like you have an admirer." Felicity looked anything but pleased.

"All right, let's go find my father and rescue Farrin," Surya said, nodding towards the cave.

"Do you think the Commander will be angry by your appearance here?" Mokuren asked softly.

Surya snorted. "If my dad had never stuck his nose in dangerous situations, then the Godwin's would still be in power."

* * *

Daunte was startled to hear the muted sounds of fighting as they entered the caves. He glanced over his shoulder and saw that Nick and the other knights were still securing the perimeter. He looked at the others and they nodded. They drew their weapons and advanced further into the cave. Thankfully the path was linear, though Daunte flinched slightly at the decaying wooden tools and carts strewn about. It reminded him too much of the Dark Chasm.

They rounded a corner and came to a circular clearing. Daunte quickly saw two branching paths ahead, but just before that in the center of the clearing he saw the fighting. He saw the silver robes of the Theocracy's Army soldiers, and he saw the black uniforms of the Queen's Knights. He also saw that the Queen's Knights were outnumbered.

Surya let out a panicked gasp and surged forward. Mokuren quickly followed, and Surya hollered as he swung his tri-nunchaku around and clubbed an enemy soldier right in the face. The soldier had almost stabbed a black-haired woman in the back, but Surya's blow knocked the soldier off his feet and saved the woman's life. The woman quickly turned around and her dark blue eyes widened. Daunte recognized her immediately, but there wasn't time to give it much thought as they joined the fight. "Best Friends!" he shouted, signaling to Roen and Felicity to do their unite attack.

Moments later the soldiers lay prone on the ground, either dead of seriously injured. Surya was breathing heavily and looked over his shoulder. "Are you all right, M—"

" _Surya_!"

Surya quickly flinched as the black-haired woman he'd saved quickly rounded upon him. She was positively furious, though Daunte noticed that the other Queen's Knights looked amused. "What are you doing here?! You were under direct orders from our Commander to stay with your cousins! How dare you defy those orders by coming here, and leave only _two Knights_ to protect your kin! You will answer for this the minute we get home!"

Surya rubbed at the back of his head embarrassedly and bowed. "A-Ah. I'm sorry, Mom."

"And Mokuren." Surya's mother turned her gaze on Surya's bodyguard. "You're supposed to be guarding him and yet you allowed him to come here?!"

"W-Well, my Lady," Mokuren said feebly, holding up her hands defensively. "The Prince would've come here anyways, so who was I to try and stop him?" she laughed nervously. "Honestly, we had the best intentions!"

Surya's mother huffed and shook her head. "What am I ever going to do with you two?"

"I-Is Dad here?" Surya asked her.

"Yes, he went further inside with Toma and Israfil." She then noticed Daunte and the others. "Oh. Who are these people, Surya?"

"Ah, let me introduce you. Everyone, this is my mother. She serves as second-in-command to the Commander of the Queen's Knights. Mom, these are my friends. They've helped me rescue my cousins. That's Daunte, Roen, Felicity, and—" he floundered when he got to Nash.

"Nash," Nash provided for him. Nash fixed his gaze on Surya's mother. "What a lovely woman your mother is, Prince."

" _Excuse_ me?" Surya asked him harshly.

"It's a pleasure to meet all of you, and allow me to express thanks for the assistance you've provided us." She gestured to herself. "My name is Lyon. Thank you for taking care of my son."

Daunte knew how he recognized Lyon. He'd seen her in Archana's memories, first scolding Surya and Mokuren for acting up during the wedding reception, and then quickly moving in to protect them from any potential threats. Lyon was a lovely woman overall, but there was something…dangerous about her that made Daunte a little on edge. She seemed delicate in appearance, but from what he'd witnessed of her fighting he knew she was a formidable warrior.

"It's nice to meet you too," Daunte said, bowing slightly. "Surya's handled plenty on his own. He's the primary reason we were able to escape the Dark Chasm, anyways."

"You have a very polite disposition," Lyon observed, smiling. "I can tell that you're a fine young man." She turned suddenly. "We must follow the Commander and the others. We believe these tunnels, though going in opposite directions, lead to where Her Highness is being held."

"Then we'll take one path and you'll take the other Mom?" Surya asked.

"I'm still upset with you for coming, but since you're already here I'll allow you to make yourself useful," Lyon said. "So yes. You take east path and we'll take the north path."

"Right." Surya glanced at the others. "Are you guys ready?"

At the moment, Daunte didn't particularly feel confident facing down Sloan Faakhir again. He looked down at his tekko and wondered if he should've gone to a blacksmith to raise their level. But he knew he couldn't simply _leave_ and find the nearest town. Sloan wouldn't wait for him to come back. "Yes, let's go."

"All this political intrigue," Nash said softly. "It's amazing how despite being such an isolated country, Nagarea is quite similar to other countries."

"Is that a good or bad thing?" Roen asked warily.

Nash shrugged. "It depends."

The group followed the east path. Thankfully with all the scrimmages occurring within the mountain the group ran into very few monsters. There were still the occasional bats, spiders, and large rats to contend with, though.

 _I wish these creatures would go after the Sheikh instead_ , Daunte thought grimly.

One of the spiders dropped something interesting though. The object looked like an urn, but Daunte couldn't tell if it was something like a flower pot or a pitcher. Nash looked over his shoulder at the object. "Ah, you can take that to an appraiser. With any luck it'll be something valuable. Though more often than not it'll be just a worthless urn."

Daunte knew Gizli would know more about it than he would. He stashed the object in his bag, hoping that it wouldn't break before he brought it back to the appraiser.

They rounded a corner, and stopped in their tracks as frantic shouting filled the air. Surya and Mokuren surged forward again, and the group quickly followed. The shouting had a definite angry tone, but—there was also a sense of _fear_. It made Daunte even more nervous, but he knew he had to keep going. They raced into a new clearing, and Daunte stopped in his tracks.

He knew this area was the main work area of the abandoned mine. There was a rail to his right that stood over a steep cliff side that hung over a dark abyss. Every two meters there was a length of coarse rope tied to the rail that extended over the cliff and down below. Just ahead he saw Lyon, Israfil, and several Queen's Knights looking above and shouting. All around them enemy soldiers lay prone on the ground. Five meters above them was a narrow walkway and two sets of scaffolding. And on one of the scaffolds…

"Please, just let her go!" Lyon shouted. "What do you hope to achieve by prolonging this any further?!"

Sheikh Sloan Faakhir stared down at them with an impassive gaze. He was not armed, but his left hand held the collar of a fourteen-year-old girl. The girl's brown hair was messy on her head and her face was streaked with tears. She was dressed in a dark purple _hanfu_ dress with a yellow sash tied around her torso. Daunte knew that the girl was most definitely Farrin.

"You are an invading heathen force in my country," Sloan boomed down to them. He wrung Farrin's collar slightly. "You are in no position to be making demands of me. You have no _right_ to be making demands of me."

"We wouldn't even be here if your government hadn't kidnapped us in the first place!" Surya shouted up to him.

Sloan turned his glare towards the prince, but then his gaze immediately shifted to Daunte. Daunte flinched slightly. "You. You will give me the True Rune _now_."

"True Rune?!" Lyon exclaimed, looking over her shoulder at Daunte.

"T-The True Rune won't obey my command to leave me," Daunte called up to him. "Please, just let the princess go!"

Instead of heeding his plea, Sloan pushed Farrin to lean over the rail of the scaffold. The Queen's Knights shouted with alarm. "Give me the True Rune, or this child will suffer an accident. Have you ever seen what a corpse looks like after falling to its death?" His glare narrowed. "A human body is fragile. And her small body will smash into pieces, every bone broken. If she hits her head, then brain matter will spill all over the ground. It won't be a pretty sight."

Farrin wailed and tried to struggle in his hold, but his grip was unmoving. Daunte felt sick by his graphic description, but he squared his shoulder. "That's the future Queen of Falena you're holding in your arms. You won't throw away her life so recklessly. Just stop with this madness and let her go!"

"How can you even _think_ of hurting her in such a way?!" Felicity shouted up to him. "Think is Esther—think of your daughter! The princess is surely the same age as your daughter! Would you ever shove Esther to her death?!"

But Sloan remained unmoved by her outburst. "So the wench and those brats _did_ give you safe haven. Then they are traitors to the Theocracy."

Felicity slapped both hands over her mouth in horror. Daunte also felt a squirm of discomfort and deepened his glare. "Never mind them! What we're talking about is Princess Farrin! We know you cannot hurt her so just stop this!"

"It is clear at this stage of the game that Queen Lymsleia will not relinquish the Sun Rune to us," Sloan answered him. "So there is no point in keeping her daughter as a hostage."

"The Sun Rune!" Lyon shouted. She clutched at her shoulder. "That—everything that you've done to the royal family is just to get the _Sun Rune_?!"

"There is nothing else of value in your filthy country."

"D-Do you have _any_ idea what will happen if the Sun Rune is separated from the Dawn Rune and the Twilight Rune again?! You would destroy your entire country! I'm not exaggerating, it _will_ happen!"

 _Did she say "again"?_ Daunte thought.

"We are wasting our time," Sloan said. "We—"

At that moment, Farrin twisted her head around and clamped her teeth down on his hand _hard_. Sloan didn't flinch or exclaim in pain. All it did was cause him to pause. But just as quickly he reacted, pressing his right hand against her face and shoving _hard_. The force of the shove sent her straight across the scaffold, landing hard three meters away.

The Queen's Knights shouted in outrage, but Sloan turned back to them. "All of you are an annoyance. It's time to silence you once and for all."

He raised his right hand. A white light emulated from his hand, and Daunte flinched again. He saw that light when Sloan beat him up. And he'd seen that light in Tidur's memory when he beat up his wife…

An inhuman shriek filled the air. Daunte blinked and gaped in horror. They were suddenly surrounded by monsters, but they weren't ordinary monsters. They looked… _demonic_.

"Look out!" Lyon shouted. Suddenly the monsters were upon them and they were engaged in battle. "Best Friends!" Daunte shouted, signaling their unite attacks.

It was difficult. As the monsters had appeared out of nowhere they'd been taken off guard and it took some time to get organized. Daunte glanced towards the scaffold, and he hissed when he saw Sloan hoist Farrin up by her collar again. He then began dragging her towards the end of the scaffold. _They're escaping!_ "HEY!" he shouted, but then had to dodge a skeleton's sword swing.

Surya suddenly shouted, and Daunte looked back up after disposing of the skeleton soldier. Sloan had paused in his retreat and was facing down someone new. It was a man in his forties, dressed in the uniform of the Queen's Knights. He wore his silver hair long, though a section of his hair was tied in a ponytail on his head. He wore a headband on his head and his pale blue eyes were glaring at Sloan. He wore a fierce expression on his face. He looked very intimidating.

"Uncle Freyjadour!" Farrin was hearing shouting.

" _Father_ ," Surya breathed.

Daunte looked at Surya, and then quickly looked back up. The Commander of the Queen's Knights said nothing, instead pulling out a tri-nunchaku and taking a fighting stance. Sloan didn't relinquish his hold on Farrin, but he quickly unsheathed a khanda sword. Freyjadour surged forward and swung his tri-nunchaku, striking at Sloan's sword. He was clearly trying to disarm the Sheikh. Sloan however merely held Farrin in front of himself as a shield and parlayed Freyjadour's blows.

Daunte couldn't watch their fight anymore though, as the monsters continued to surround them. The Queen's Knights fought bravely and sustained minimal injuries, and it allowed Daunte himself to remain brave in the face of their overwhelming. He wondered just _how_ Sloan had been able to summon so many monsters. It almost seemed like Allise's Pale Gate Rune, but whatever _she_ had summoned had left when it was finished. These monsters were alive and whole, and they kept attacking.

 _Is…Is the Sheikh wearing a True Rune, too?! Then why do they want the Sun Rune?!_

After fifteen minutes of fighting, the monsters were finally all dead. Daunte heard a shout from above and quickly looked up. Sloan was bent to one knee, though he still held onto Farrin, but his khanda sword fell from the scaffold and clattered to the ground. Freyjadour however was still armed, and he still over the Sheikh menacingly.

 _H-He…he defeated the Sheikh?!_ Daunte was amazed that _anybody_ could defeat a brute like Sloan in combat, but Freyjadour had done it.

 _But of course he did it. He_ _ **is**_ _the Commander of Falena's Queen's Knights, after all. And didn't Surya say he led a civil war as a teenager?_

Freyjadour still said nothing, but the tension in the air was quickly dissipating. They had won. Sloan was cornered and unarmed now. There was nothing left for him to do but admit defeat and hand Farrin over to her uncle.

But…but Sloan was crazy. Daunte knew this, but he was still surprised by what happened next.

"You think you've won," Sloan said, panting softly. "But—I won't allow you victory."

Then with one fluid motion, he raised Farrin into the air and _threw_ her off the scaffold. He quickly took off running, but Freyjadour disregarded him and frantically shot his hand out towards Farrin. But she was just beyond his reach. His face was frozen in silent horror as the young princess fell from the scaffolds, her arms desperately reaching out for her uncle. Everyone around Daunte shrieked in horror and some began to cry as she plummeted.

"FARRIN!" Without hesitation, Surya leapt onto the rail and jumped high into the air, even as Mokuren tried to restrain him. "Prince!"

Farrin's body slammed into Surya's, and the prince curled inwardly as they fell together. His body slammed hard into the steep cliff side, absorbing the impact of them both.

But then, they began rapidly sliding towards the edge.

" _Surya_!" Felicity shrieked. Up above, Freyjadour was quickly running off the scaffold and down towards them, but he would obviously not reach them in time.

Surya reached back with his right hand and frantically tried to grab hold of one of the hanging pieces of rope, even as Farrin clung to him, sobbing hysterically into his chest. His fingers found one, but he was unable to get a grip. His eyes looked forward, seeing the ledge approach quickly and the oblivion that lay below. _No! We can't die like this!_

At the last moment, Surya felt something snag his wrist. The bottom half of both his body and Farrin's flew over the side, but their bodies stilled before they plummeted further. He looked at Farrin, who was staring back at him through her tears, and then he looked up.

Above him, with rope wrapped around his left wrist while his right hand held him fast, was _Daunte_.

"We need to hurry!" someone shouted above them. "Climb down these ropes and get to them!"

Surya stared at Daunte stunned for a long moment. Then he turned to Farrin. "Farrin, we need you to climb up our bodies and use the rope Daunte's holding to climb back up the cliff."

"W-What?" the princess sputtered. She was crying so hard that her nose was swollen and had turned red. She looked up at Daunte fearfully. "C…Climb up your bodies?"

"Climb up our bodies," Surya told her calmly. "Do it quickly, our grip won't last forever."

"B-But what if I slip, Surya?"

"You won't. I believe in you. We both do. Right, Daunte?" he looked up at Daunte.

Daunte quickly nodded, focusing all of his energy on the two grips he held. He prayed that his weak grip would hang on long enough for them to be rescued.

"A-A…All right." Farrin squeezed Surya in a quick hug before she began gingerly climbing up their bodies. She dug her fingers into their clothes and tugged. She looked light, but Daunte was still surprised by the stress her weight put on his body. The princess turned crimson when she left her cousin and began climbing up Daunte's body, but Daunte held himself still. The princess was wearing a flowery perfume that was obnoxiously strong, but Daunte kept his focus as she dug her feet into his shoulders and grabbed a section of the rope. Without their bodies to cling to, Farrin began to rapidly hyperventilate.

"Farrin, please hurry," Surya implored her calmly. "We can't hang on much longer!"

She choked on a few sobs, but she shook off her unease and began to climb the rope. The pressure of her feet leaving his shoulders almost caused Daunte to lose his grip on the rope, but he rapidly wrapped it tighter around his hand as she began climbing back up the cliff towards the Queen's Knights.

"Daunte, I want you to listen to me carefully," Surya said, looking up at him. "I…I'm going to have to ask you to let me go."

"W-What?!" Daunte sputtered, looking down at him. "Let you go?!"

"Let me go," Surya said. "I don't think they're going to reach us in time, and I know your grip isn't good with your broken fingers. You're going to eventually lose your grip and then we both are going to fall. But if you let me go now, then you'll still have time to save yourself."

"I can't!" Daunte exclaimed. "How could you tell me such a thi—UGH!" his words cut off as he felt his poorly healed fingers tremble around Surya's wrist.

"It's okay," Surya said, holding Daunte's gaze with his own. "I'm telling you it's okay. It's my duty as a Queen's Knight to do everything I can to protect my family. Giving my life for their sake is only inevitable and I accept it."

"What your duty to your _family_?!" Daunte snapped. "Do you think throwing your life away like this does anybody any good?! Do you think your parents will feel _proud_ if they have to watch you fall to your death?! Don't give up like this!"

"I'm not giving up. I'm just being practical." Above their heads Farrin had climb only halfway up the rope, but Toma had been lowered down far enough to grab the princess and pull her back up. "We don't have a lot of time, Daunte. I can feel your grip on me weakening. If you don't let me go now, we're both going to die."

Daunte tried to respond, but he indeed felt his own grip on Surya's wrist slipping. Growling in frustration, he locked his legs around the prince's upper body, unwilling to let him go. "Just hang on to me and _shut up_!"

"Dau—" his words broke off as they both slipped down the cliff slightly. Daunte quickly glanced up and saw that his hand had given way on the rope, and was quickly slipping around his hand. "Let me go, Daunte!" Surya said more forcefully. "Let me go or we're both going to die!"

Daunte shook his head, trying to get a grip with both hands again. He dug his right elbow into the ground beneath him and began heavy upwards with all his strength, trying to pull Surya up. "W-What are you doing?!" Surya exclaimed.

Surya was easily the same weight as him (possibly even heavier) so the prince unsurprisingly didn't budge from his current position below Daunte. His fingers were trembling violently, but Daunte squeezed his palm around his wrist, refusing to let go. _Come on, COME ON!_

The Rune on Daunte's hand abruptly lit up, startling both boys. Both Daunte and Surya gaped as the True Rune's symbol rose into the air. Daunte felt a sudden rush of power down his right arm, and his fingers—his fingers suddenly snapped tightly around Surya's wrist. Daunte choked on a breath, and pulled on Surya once more. This time, Surya's body budged and he was pulled upwards.

 _T-The Rune is giving me strength to lift him up?!_

Surya's eyes were wide, and while he didn't try to pull himself up he said nothing more as Daunte miraculously pulled him higher and higher. Above them, the others were shouting something, but the sound was muted by the sudden rumbling in Daunte's ears…and the bright white that filled his vision.

" _Surya, you mustn't hesitate!"_

Daunte blinked. He was no longer deep in the High Peak Mountains. He was standing on an open plain on a clear sunny day. He looked around himself and paused. In the distance, roughly six kilometers away, he saw a village that was surrounded by primarily scorched earth. The vegetation seemed to be desperately clinging to life, but it looked like a wasteland.

" _Try not to think about the fact that you're facing your father, Surya. Imagine him as an enemy threatening your family. You must not hesitate with your strikes, or your enemy will befall you!"_

Daunte turned back around. He saw three figures directly in front of him. Lyon and Freyjadour were standing over a child roughly ten years old, who was kneeling in the grass and panting heavily. Freyjadour had his tri-nunchaku out, and a smaller version of the weapon rested in the grass next to the boy.

 _Surya?_ Daunte wondered, staring down at the child.

" _I think that enough for today, don't you?"_ Lyon asked Freyjadour. _"You both have been practicing like this since this morning."_

" _W-Wait,"_ Surya gasped. The boy grabbed his tri-nunchaku and struggled to his feet. _"One more time. I promise I'll get it this time."_

" _Surya, you shouldn't push yourself,"_ Lyon told him. _"You still have a few years before you'll even be considered as a candidate for the Queen's Knights. Let's stop for today."_

" _I'm fine,"_ Surya insisted. _"Father, please give me one more try. I promise I won't hesitate this time."_

Freyjadour said nothing, but he nodded. Lyon sighed heavily, but stepped back so that her husband and son had room to spar. Surya lunged at Freyjadour and swung his tri-nunchaku. The two of the sparred for a few minutes, and Surya did indeed not hold anything back. But the child was tired, his breathing ragged, and after a few minutes he stumbled and fell to his knees again.

As Surya remained hunched over, several fragments of sentences suddenly rattled in the air. _"Spoiled brat."_

" _Yet another useless male royal."_

" _Letting that boy join the Queen's Knights would be detrimental to Falena."_

" _If the Commander allows his own son to join, then the Queen's Knight will look like an elitist clique where_ _ **better**_ _soldiers would not be welcome."_

" _They should've had a daughter instead."_

" _And have yet another threat to Queen Lymsleia's children? They were better off not having a child_ _ **at all**_ _."_

There was nobody else around besides the three of them so Daunte was puzzled about where this random assortment of voices was coming from. He looked back at Surya and saw that the child looked increasingly upset. _Was…was he remembering gossip he'd heard other people say about him?_

A shadow fell over Surya and the boy looked up. Freyjadour was kneeling down over him, looking at him with concern. The Commander of the Queen's Knights still said nothing, but he suddenly smiled a gentle smile and extended a hand to his son. The distress in Surya's face dissipated slowly and he returned his father's grin and accepted his hand to help him stand up.

A loud grunt startled Daunte and he blinked again. For a moment he panicked as he wondered if the vision had distracted him enough to make him drop Surya. Then he realized he'd raised the prince to the same level as him, and it was Surya who was grunting as he strained to reach out for a length of rope. Just as his fingers grazed it, a large hand swiftly closed over his wrist.

Daunte turned to look up, and found himself face-to-face with Freyjadour. But the Commander had his eyes on Surya. Surya stared back at his father, mouth hanging open for a moment before he breathed, "Father."

Daunte jerked as a hand grabbed his left one and quickly looked up. General Israfil was above him. "Don't worry, Sir Daunte. I got you."

"They got them!" a shout rose from above them. "Pull them up!"

Daunte let out the breath he didn't realize he'd been holding in as both Surya and him were pulled back up the cliff. _We…We're going to be all right._

* * *

It was many hours later at dusk when Daunte found himself standing on the beach of the Northern Wharf, seeing the large Falenan entourage of for their trip back home. He'd half expected them all to be herded into one large boat, so he was very surprised to see several smaller boats lining the coastline, many of them no more than fishing boats. The Falenans seemed very stoic, but most of them were positively gushing over Kaylani's newborn son.

The Falenan royals themselves seemed to be in much better moods than before. With all of them successfully rescued and without serious injury, even Archana was cracking a smile. Signe remained glued to Farrin's side however, hanging onto her older sister's waist as they waited for their boats to be ready.

"I can't believe it's over," Roen said, cracking his neck. "I mean, was it even a month ago when all of us were stuck in the Dark Chasm?"

"That all seems like a bad nightmare," Felicity said. "But…But a lot of good has come of this. We thwarted a _massive_ international incident. It's pretty overwhelming, isn't it?"

Daunte opened his mouth to respond, but a shout interrupted them. "There you guys are!"

The trio turned to see Gunther approaching them, followed by Allise and several Liberation Army soldiers. "I see you guys were successful in rescuing the last princess," Gunther continued, smiling broadly. "Excellent job!"

"What happened at the Garrison?" Daunte asked him.

"The Sheikh's second-in-command, Adalgiso, launched a counterattack to reclaim the Garrison," Allise supplied for them. "He was outnumbered, but…" she winced slightly. "But Sheikh Keiran Umed showed up with his main forces to assist Adalgiso. Their combined assault was enough to drive us off."

Daunte's heart dropped into his stomach and he looked at Roen and Felicity. _We…We lost the Garrison?!_

"Don't be looking so guilty," Nash said beside them, sauntering over. "Do you think your absence had anything to do with this failure? No offense to your leader, but it was inevitable. The three of you leaving made no difference, believe me."

"While this is true," Allise said. "Lord Bearyl has ordered us to take custody of you three and to bring you back to headquarters immediately."

"B-But listen," Felicity said. "We weren't trying to cause trouble! We just wanted to help Surya help his family! And we succeeded!"

"We know," Gunther said grimly, but he said no more than that.

"Guys." Surya came over to them, following closely by Mokuren. The prince looked so happy that it alleviated some of the tension inside of Daunte. "All of this is possible because of you guys. I'll never be able to repay you for this, but know that I'm eternally grateful."

"Hey, you helped us escape from the Dark Chasm," Felicity told him. "We're just as grateful to you as you are to us."

Surya bowed slightly. "Thank you so much for everything."

"We'll be sure to pass along your thanks to our Lord Commander as well," Allise told him.

Surya flinched violently, and the gesture made Daunte even more uncomfortable. But the prince straightened and smiled at them. "I won't forget what you all have done for me, and neither will my Queen." He suddenly turned to Daunte. "I owe you my thanks and my life." He held his hand out to Daunte. "Whatever happens from here on out, I consider you a great friend, Daunte. If you ever consider taking up residence in Falena, I'll do everything I can to secure a good life for both Arin and you. It's the very least I can do."

Daunte accepted his handshake and smiled. "Thank _you_ for everything as well, Surya. I also consider you a great friend."

A loud whistle ripped through the air. "All right, everyone!" Lyon shouted, speaking on behalf of Freyjadour. It's time to get going!"

"Wait."

Everyone looked up with this one word. Farrin was looking at the group with hard eyes and a deep frown. Or rather, she was looking at Daunte.

Roen glanced at Daunte briefly, having followed her gaze. "I-Is something wrong, Your Highness?" he asked.

Farrin promptly marched over to Daunte. Daunte was startled, but he didn't move away. "You saved my life," Farrin said. "And you refused to let go of Surya's hand when he told you to. Your name is Daunte, correct?"

Daunte was unsure whether to reply or remain silent, but he thought it would be rude to not answer her. "That's right," he said.

Farrin's eyes looked him over carefully. The Crowned Princess suddenly walked around him, as though she were inspecting an object on display. Daunte glanced at Roen warily, but he saw that Felicity looked highly amused.

Farrin came back around to Daunte's front. After a moment, she nodded to herself. "I've decided," she said evenly. "I want you to marry me."

"EH?!" the entire assembly around them shouted in shock. Daunte couldn't even muster a similar sound. He simply gaped at her.

Farrin folded her arms over her chest, completely unabashed by her own proclamation. "Falena used to have a Sacred Games for the princess to find a husband, but even with that tradition abolished I only want a strong man with a good moral conviction to be my husband. You saved my life, and you saved my cousin's life. You meet all the expectations for what I want in a husband."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Freyr shouted, surging forward and pushing himself between Daunte and his twin. "Aren't you getting a bit ahead of yourself, Farrin?! You're only fourteen! _And_ this is the first real conversation you've had with Daunte!"

"What does that matter?" Farrin asked him. "How often have our ancestors carried on real conversations with their future husbands? Mother has always talked about Grandfather, and how he was a brave warrior with a good heart. Daunte reminds me a lot of how Mother described Grandfather, and so I think he would be a perfect husband for me."

"You sly dog!" Gunther roared with laughter, slapping Daunte on the shoulder. "You've been proposed to by a princess! And not just _any_ princess, but a future queen!"

"Aww, will you have a Falenan wedding or a Nagarean wedding?" Allise teased him.

"As a married man myself, I must warn you about what it means to be committed," Nash said.

Daunte was sputtering, unable to formulate words. He stared at Farrin, who remained unabashed by his reaction to her proclamation. "I will send an envoy for you when I assume the throne as Queen. I anticipate that to be in about seven-to-ten years from now."

"All right, that's enough!" Lyon laughed, gently pulling the future Queen away. "I've think we've all spent too much time here!"

Surya looked highly amused by all of this and patted Daunte on the shoulder. "Well, this wasn't what I had in mind, but it _definitely_ looks like you'll be secure."

"How adorable," Mokuren cooed.

"Farrin, think about this logically!" Freyr was shouting behind his sister.

Daunte was still stammering and sputtering as the Falenans made their way to the boats. The same single thought kept rattling around in his head: _Don't I have a say in this?! What about what_ _ **I**_ _want?!_

* * *

After seeing the Falenans off, the group headed back to Liberation Army headquarters. Surya's absence was noticed immediately, and it felt strange to not have the prince around anymore. Surya had been with them since they'd made their harrowing escape from the Dark Chasm, but now that the Prince had gone how it felt… _alien_ for him to not be around.

 _We're going to have to get used to not having him around, though. His mission here was to rescue his family. His family was rescued, so there would be no point in him staying. Besides, why would he pledge himself to an Army that flagrantly disregarded his family?_

"I miss Surya," Felicity said softly when they made camp for a short rest.

"Me too," Roen said. "It's amazing we've only known him for a short time. It feels like we've known him for _years_ , doesn't it?"

"Yeah," Daunte agreed.

Gunther tried to keep the mood light as they ventured back to headquarters, but Daunte knew what awaited them. They'd disobeyed Bearyl Lutis's orders and had abandoned the Garrison. It didn't matter that they had been doing the right thing. Daunte had a feeling that Bearyl would definitely not see things that way.

His suspicions were further confirmed when they arrived. Wounded soldiers were lying everywhere, even in the woods leading up to the castle. Clara was running from person to person, and she looked highly stressed. Nobody shouted any greetings to them. At the same time though, nobody threw condemnations at them either.

When they came face-to-face with Bearyl though, Daunte felt a stab of fear in his gut. Their leader looked positively furious, and Varnaz looked downright _murderous_. Other soldiers inside the war room also looked angry. The only person who didn't look angry was Caesar, but his somber expression wasn't at all comforting.

"All three of you disobeyed me," Bearyl rasped. Daunte quickly realized Nash was no longer with them but didn't have time to ponder where the Harmonian spy had gone to. "You left the Garrison instead of staying with your unit to secure it. You were not there when _two armies_ attacked us!" Bearyl bellowed. "And you were not there when we lost over _two hundred soldiers_!"

A hard lump formed in Daunte's throat. _Two hundred soldiers?_ He wondered if any of the soldiers had been from his unit and the thought alone made him want to throw up.

"Have you nothing to say in your defense?!" Bearyl demanded.

Daunte swallowed thickly and forced the words out. "L-Lord Bearyl. We had to save Princess Farrin. We _needed_ to save Princess Farrin. I'm sorry for our losses, but—"

"Your ego overrules common sense, boy!" Bearyl hollered, slamming his fist against the fist. "As if an inexperienced child such as yourself could make _any_ difference in all of this!"

"If Daunte couldn't make any difference, then why was he made commanding officer of his unit?!" Roen shot back. "If we're so insignificant, then why are you angry with us for leaving?! Obviously we're so _worthless_ that our being at the Garrison made absolutely no difference one way or another!"

Bearyl's rage was visibly growing out of control. His face was turning purple and a large vein formed on his forehead. Felicity tried to pacify the situation. "M-My Lord. We had a personal hand in saving Princess Farrin. Daunte _personally_ saved her life! So it wasn't a matter of us getting in the way. We _did_ make a difference!"

Bearyl was still seething regardless. He looked ready to lash out at them violently. "You are all traitors," he rasped.

"W-What?" Daunte asked numbly.

"All three of you disobeyed a direct command of your leader," Caesar suddenly chimed in. "We have zero tolerance for such insubordination. Despite your efforts serving a higher purpose, there is no excusing this. Therefore, the three of you are hereby suspended for one month. You will be confined to your rooms and you are forbidden from leaving headquarters or participating in missions."

"…Yes," Bearyl said, suddenly more calmly as Daunte and the others gaped at him. "All three of you are suspended. Surrender your weapons to Varnaz immediately. If we had a runemaster here, we would also be stripping you of your Runes. Count yourselves lucky that I'm being so lenient with you."

Daunte almost spoke in protest, but he found himself face-to-face with Varnaz, who glared at him. "Your weapon." He held out his hands.

Daunte sighed heavily, but gave in. He removed his tekko and handed them to Varnaz. Roen grimly handed over his sheathed bolo knife, and Felicity ducked her head and gave him her knife belt.

"You are dismissed," Bearyl told them. "Don't expect me to be so merciful next time."

The soldiers herded out of the room before them, Daunte saw that the three of them were being escorted out. Daunte bit down on his lower lip and ducked his head as they were led out of the war room. But they had barely crossed the threshold when he heard it.

"Can you believe it, Caesar? The Falenan Royal family was successfully rescued! And by my troops no less! An alliance with Falena is all but secured! They're honor-bound to lend me assistance!"

Daunte's head shot up and looked over his shoulder, but the soldier behind him gestured at him to keep moving. Anger snapped through him quickly, even though he complied. _Wait a minute. Lord Bearyl is_ _ **happy**_ _we went and rescued Princess Farrin?! Then why the hell was he so angry?! Why are we being punished if he's pleased with our results?!_

He looked at Roen and Felicity, and he saw that they too had heard what Bearyl had said. And they looked just as upset as Daunte felt.

* * *

It was nighttime. Arin was fast asleep in his bed, but Daunte was still wide awake. He stared at the ceiling for a long moment before getting out of bed. He went straight to the door and tried to open it. The knob wouldn't turn in his hand.

 _So…being suspended means I lose my weapon and my freedom is limited? They lock me in my room at night? This…this is no different than what happened to me in the Dark Chasm._

He shook away the unpleasant memories and climbed back into bed. He curled up on his side and squeezed his eyes shut, trying to sleep. _I was only doing what was right. With how easily the Sheikh was able to take back his Garrison, Lord Bearyl should've realized that it was a foolish idea to seize it in the first place! And yet he's_ _ **happy**_ _about how we rescued the Crowned Princess of Falena?! He publicly admonishes us for disobeying orders, yet acts like our insubordination was part of some grand plan?! Which is it?! He can't just say one thing when he means something else!_

He rolled back over onto his bed and sighed heavily. "Why am I here?" he muttered.

A white light suddenly enveloped the room. Daunte sat straight up in bed and gaped as the light became bigger and bigger. Suddenly a figure emerged from the light as though floating. They gently settled down upon the ground as the light abruptly vanished.

"Keeper of the True Rune. Your destiny has been guided to the path of the stars."

Daunte's jaw hung open as he stared at the woman standing before him. She was dressed in white and a white hood covered her loose black hair. There was a red, oval-shaped Rune right in the center of her forehead. She turned her head towards Daunte but did not open her eyes. "Keeper of the True Rune. One destined to lead the world to change. What is your name?"

"D…Daunte." Daunte spoke barely above a whisper. "Who are you?"

"Allow me to introduce myself." The woman gestured to her chest. "I am Leknaat, formally of the Gate Rune Clan and possessor of the Back Gate Rune. I have sensed the winds of change here in Nagarea, and I sense that they involve you, Daunte."

Daunte looked at the Rune on her forehead. "H-How did you know I had a True Rune?"

"Possessors of True Runes have a…awareness of other True Rune holders. My Rune allows for me to restore and maintain balance in this world. There is an imbalance in this country, and with this imbalance I sense…familiarity." Leknaat frowned slightly. "But I heard the calling of your True Rune, and I have sensed you use it to serve and assist the people around you. You should be proud, Daunte. Not many in the world are considered worthy of the _Rune of Restoration_."

"Rune of Restoration?" Daunte quickly looked down at his hand. "That's the name of my Rune?"

"It is the parent Rune of the Resurrection Rune," Leknaat told him. "It grants you restorative powers. You can restore in a most rudimentary sense—such as healing—and you can also restore long forgotten memories. The more you gain control of the Rune, the more powerful you will become. But you must take care to not allow that power to consume you. A True Rune selects its wielder and it will abandon its wielder if the wielder if no longer deemed worthy of its power."

Daunte sucked in a sharp breath. So many questions he'd had were now suddenly being answered at once. It was a bit overwhelming. "Why are you telling me these things?"

"Because whether you realize it or not, you are guided by the stars," Leknaat told him. "The Stars touch upon many souls during many events in our existence, and the Tenkai Star has reached out for you. Of the 108 Stars in our sky, of heaven and earth, you have been enveloped by the most important star of all. It is your destiny to seek out the others who will naturally congregate to you, and with them you will make great changes to this world and restore the balance that is desired here."

Daunte didn't understand any of it. He shook his head. "I-I'm not a leader. I'm not leading this Army, Lady Leknaat. I don't know how I'm supposed to lead 107 other people when I'm in no position of authority."

"You will understand in time, Daunte." The bright light began to envelop Leknaat once more. "And as you meet the other 108 Stars of Destiny, _your_ destiny will become clearer to you."

Daunte was still gaping even after the light fading—and Leknaat was gone. He rubbed at his eyes and shook his head. He felt a little overwhelmed. _Maybe I imagined that whole thing?_

"Well, _that_ was something unexpected."

Daunte yelped and Arin abruptly sat up in bed, half-awake. "B-Brother? What is it?"

"So destiny has chosen you, Daunte." Daunte gaped as Nash suddenly emerged from the shadows of the room. The moonlight from the window washed over his face. "It's to bed expected though, since a True Rune chose you."

"H-How long have you been in here?!" Daunte sputtered, curling his fingers into his blankets.

"Not long, I promise. But long enough to witness the visitor you received."

"Visitor?" Arin looked at Daunte with confusion. "Who is he talking about, Daunte?"

 _S-So I didn't imagine that? That woman was real?!_ Daunte quickly shook his head and looked at Nash. "What are you doing here, Nash?"

"Isn't it obvious? I'm here to make you an offer." Nash bowed slightly. "I was sent by Harmonia to find a True Rune. I've found you, a possessor of a True Rune, and so my mission is complete. I'm asking you to come with me back to Harmonia."

"Harmonia?" Arin asked. He pushed back the covers and stood. "You want Daunte to leave Nagarea?!"

"You're welcome to come, of course," Nash reassured the child, but his eyes remained on Daunte. "But Harmonia is _very_ interested in True Runes. That a Rune like the Rune of Restoration chose you indicates that you are a rare breed, Daunte. As much as Harmonia is interested in your Rune alone, they will accommodate the wielder the Rune has chosen."

Daunte looked down at his Rune and then looked back up at Nash. "You…You want me to just up and leave?"

"I wasn't going to ask at first, but I've been paying attention. And I began wondering—just what does this country really offer you? You suffered under an oppressive government, so you joined rebels. But the rebels are led by an incompetent leader with a severe chip on his shoulder. I mean, look at what happened to your friends and you for doing the logical thing of rescuing the Falenan royals. You've joined an army that sees no value in you and treats you like a nuisance.

"If you leave with me tonight, I can ensure that you receive a luxurious, safe life in Harmonia. You will be surrounded by people who actually see value in you. You'll never be in fear of your life again, and your little brother will be taken care of. Doesn't this sound like a much better deal?"

Arin looked at Daunte, but Daunte was staring at Nash. Nash's offer sounded too good to be true. He didn't know anything about Harmonia—everything he'd learned when he'd been in school had been centered almost entirely on Nagarea. He heard only a few things about Falena and Armes, but that was it. "…Harmonia would want to use me as a weapon, wouldn't they?"

"Perhaps," Nash admitted. "But how is that any different than what you're doing now?"

"Brother." Arin walked over and sat beside Daunte in his bed. "What will you do? A-Are we really going to leave and go with him?"

Daunte held Nash's gaze. Nash was probably glamorizing his possible life in Harmonia, but he was also honest about how Daunte would be used. _I just want to take care of Arin. Nash said I could bring Arin with me, but…what about Roen? Felicity? And Nagarea in general? I'd be abandoning my birthplace just to secure my own life. Lady Leknaat said I was destined to bring change, but…but how can I bring change by being an indentured servant in Harmonia?_

It was tempting to say yes, but ultimately Daunte shook his head. "Thank you for the offer, but we're going to stay here. I can't abandon my friends and I can't leave Nagarea when it's in such turmoil."

Nash surprisingly didn't get upset. He chuckled lightly. "It's what I expected, but I knew I had to make an offer anyways." He turned on his heel and waved. "Have a good night, Daunte."

Daunte was about to ask him _how_ he intended to leave with the door locked, but seconds later he no longer felt Nash's presence. The Harmonian spy was gone.

"I-I'm glad that you told him no," Arin said softly, leaning into his side. "It's awful here, but we can't leave. We have to make things better, Brother."

"I know," Daunte said, sliding an arm around his shoulders. He looked towards the window and stared at the full moon.

 _I chose to stay. So what do I do now?_

* * *

End of Chapter One


	14. Chapter Two: Part One

Both marriage polls are going to be closing in two weeks, so make sure to get your votes in on your choices for Haswar and Lymsleia's husbands. If you are unable to vote in the poll, feel free to leave your vote in a review here. Remember that you have the option to vote for _two_ people in Lym's poll. Here's the link: forum/Suikoden-VI-Fanfiction-Polls/180690/

* * *

Chapter Two: Part One

 _One month later…_

The air was thick with tension in the war room of the Liberation Army headquarters. Nash could sense it, even standing just outside the room. He glanced at Sierra. "I have a feeling this won't go very well."

"Well, the _current_ meeting going on is not going well," she replied, rolling her eyes. "So it's not surprising."

Nash grinned at her. "You seem nervous, old girl."

Sierra glared at him with crimson eyes. "I'm not. I'm annoyed. I don't see why you persist in staying in this country. Every single person I've met here with some sort of power is a selfish idiot. And the…food is not very appetizing either."

"We're here because my mission is not yet complete," Nash gently reminded her. "I've returned to Harmonia empty-handed _twice_. I don't believe they'll allow a third failure."

"As if _you_ should be afraid of insignificant humans."

"You haven't met many Bishops, I see."

* * *

Inside the war room, Caesar stood tense. He looked at Bearyl for a long moment and then looked across the table at the man Bearyl was addressing.

"I can't believe you would do this," Bearyl said hotly. "You ordered your men to abandon their posts in Zinnia? Are you out of your mind? Do you realize what you've done?!"

"Like I told you, my Lord," Lorik Varra said tensely. "I had no choice. The citizens of Zinnia poisoned the water supply in the mayor's mansion. Four of my men have died and _twenty_ others are either vomiting uncontrollably or have absolutely no control over their bowels! In the last month or so the people of Zinnia have indicated to us that they, in _no_ way shape or form, appreciate our liberating them from Sheikh Sloan Faakhir's control! We were outnumbered and desperate! I had to abandon the town for the safety and security of my men!"

Bearyl scoffed and shook his head furiously. "Since when is maintaining an occupied town ever easy? All this shows me is that you made absolutely no effort to win the citizens over! Is it any wonder when a spoiled aristocrat like yourself takes power?!"

"How _dare_ you!" Tala hollered. She even reached for the gunstock war club strapped to her back, and Varnaz in turn quickly readied his morning star. But Lorik gestured to Tala and the young woman immediately backed down. "I will not stand here and be insulted by you, my Lord. I've been the mayor of my hamlet since I was eighteen years old. Since then I've led my people through every strife in this country. From famine to tax hikes and every known harassment there is. I know how the political games work _sir_."

"And yet you lost Zinnia," Bearyl shot back. "Which only proves you're not as good as you puffed yourself up to be when you joined the Liberation Army."

"What it _means_ ," Lorik countered, his voice rising. "Is that I know when I'm facing a losing battle. I have sacrificed _much_ for this Army! I've marched the people of my town—men and women of all ages—straight to their deaths time and time again because I believe in this cause! But I'm not going to continue spilling their blood over a town that has _no_ appreciation for everything we have done for them!" Lorik slammed his fist into the war table. "I will not do it anymore! I must take care of them, Bearyl! And if that means withdrawing my forces from a hostile town, then you better believe I will do it!"

Bearyl was breathing heavily through his nostrils. He suddenly straightened and folded his arms over his chest. "You don't want them to spill blood anymore? So does this mean you're withdrawing from the Liberation Army?"

Shock registered on Lorik's face, and he looked rapidly between Bearyl, Varnaz, and Caesar. He stammered for a moment before he said. "I-I never said that. I was referring to Zi—"

"If you don't have the stomach to remain committed to your missions, then how can I trust you with _anything_ in this Army?" Bearyl snarled.

"Haven't you listen to a _single damned thing_ I've said?!" Lorik hollered. "My people are dead! They were killed by the citizens of Zinnia, and this was just one of MANY incidents! I withdrew from the town for their safety! Hasn't that registered _at all_ , Bearyl Lutis?!"

Bearyl snorted again. "The only thing that's registered is that you've played me for a fool, Lorik Varra."

"My Lord—" Caesar suddenly spoke up.

"I see now," Lorik said. The usually composed man was positively furious. "You don't see any value in me. You don't see any value in my people. All we are to you is just _pawns_ you feel you can push around." He knocked the figurines off the map as though for emphasis. "You don't give a damn what Agameru has given for you, for this _Army_. I was a fool to ever pledge us to your cause." He turned on his heel. "Tala, send the word out and gather what's left of our people. We're returning home."

"So you're quitting?" Bearyl demanded incredulously. "One little loss and you give up?! Thank you for confirming _everything_ I have said about you!"

Lorik looked over his shoulder and gave Bearyl a deathly glare. "The fact that the losses I've suffered is nothing more than a "little loss" to you validates to me that it was a mistake to join you. I wish you victory…and may you learn some _humility_ along the way."

"Lord Lorik—" Caesar began.

"Consider it done, my Lord," Tala said, her glare even more deadly than Lorik's. The two of them then stormed out of the war room.

"Good riddance," Bearyl rasped, shaking his head.

"Lord Bearyl, I—"

"Varnaz, send out the command to all our allies. Lorik Varra and the town of Agameru are to be treated no differently than the enemy. They've abandoned our cause so our soldiers are forbidden from going to the town. Any and all messages that come from Varra or Agameru are to be burned upon receiving. No association with that pathetic little hamlet whatsoever is allowed."

"Lord Bearyl—" Caesar said more forcefully.

"Yes, sir," Varnaz said, and immediately left the room.

" _My Lord_ ," Caesar said, coming to Bearyl's side. "We must—"

"Send in the next one!" Bearyl called out towards the door.

The double doors opened once more and Nash and Sierra sauntered inside. "Wow, what was wrong with his Lordship?" Nash asked humorously. "He looked like he ate a bad egg! Oh, hello Caesar!"

"Hello, Nash," Caesar said numbly.

"So, my Lord," Nash said, addressing Bearyl. "To what do we owe the honor of your personal summons?"

"The two of you have been here for over a month," Bearyl began. He was still simmering with anger from his argument with Lorik. "And in that time you both have contributed _nothing_ to my Army."

"Nothing?" Nash asked, looking surprised. "I seem to recall saving the Crowned Princess of Falena with your soldiers."

"And what you done since then? Neither of you have gone on missions. Neither of you have even provided any useful information to me. You haven't even told me a single thing about Harmonia!"

"Why would I? I'm a spy from Harmonia. Do you realize what will happen to me if I spill Harmonia's secrets?"

"As if you would know any," Sierra muttered.

"When I look at you both I see a couple of freeloaders who have overstayed their hospitality and have eaten all my food," Bearyl snapped. "You have ten seconds to tell me exactly how either of you are _any_ use to my Army!"

"Eaten all your food?" Sierra echoed. She frowned deeply. "We've eaten _none_ of your food!"

"I'm sorry you feel that we're not contributing anything," Nash said. "But in reality we're actually being very helpful to the Liberation Army. Our work just happens behind the scenes."

"Then tell me the information I want to know! Or send word to Harmonia that we need assistance!"

"I cannot do that."

"Then you're not welcome here." Bearyl jabbed a finger at them. "You're both a waste of time and of absolutely no use to me. Therefore, I'm dismissing you from my Army. Vacate these premises immediately."

"Waste of time?" Sierra's demeanor suddenly turned dangerous. Her ruby eyes glowed dark red and she squared her small shoulders. "How _dare_ you speak to me that way? You—a stupid little human whose ego is bigger than his actual worth! Do you not realize who I am? I eat pathetic little peons like you for breakfast, lunch, _and_ dinner!"

Bearyl faltered for the first time, and fear visibly flooded through his body. Caesar was also on edge, though he began to gingerly step away from Bearyl.

"That's enough, honey," Nash said, suddenly inserting himself between Sierra and Bearyl. He forced a smile at the leader over his shoulder. "We get the message. We'll be on our way." He calmly turned Sierra around and steered her towards the door. As they reached the door though, Nash suddenly turned and looked at Caesar. "I know you have a lot to prove, Caesar, but I expected better judgment from a Silverberg." Then they were gone.

Caesar gaped after him, even as Bearyl suddenly rounded upon. "What was he talking about?"

Caesar slowly looked back at him. He took a moment to regain his bearings before he said. "I'm impressed, my Lord. In the span of five minutes, you manage to successfully burn two important bridges."

"Important bridges?" Bearyl barked out a laugh and turned away. He knelt down on the floor to pick up the figurines Lorik had knocked over. "The mayor of Agameru and a Harmonian spy are _hardly_ important bridges!"

"My Lord," Caesar said hotly, standing over him. "I've told you this before. Any and all potential allies—no matter how big or small their significance may be to you—are important. We don't have very many alliances as it is, in case you haven't noticed! We can't afford to burn what little bridges we have! And you're not doing so effortlessly, but you're doing so in such a way to ensure that we can _never_ rebuild those bridges!"

"Why would I want Lorik Varra to come back? A man who can barely swing a sword and who allows a _woman_ to fight all his battles?" Bearyl dumped the figurines back onto the map. "We'll get bigger and stronger allies than him."

"How will you do so when we're losing the allies we currently have?!"

Bearyl glared at Caesar. "Your discontent is irritating me, Caesar. You offered me your services in order to restore Nagarea to proper order. Why did you join my cause if you have absolutely no faith in me?"

"I _do_ have faith in you," Caesar insisted. "If I didn't, we wouldn't be having this conversation!"

Bearyl reached out and touched Caesar on the shoulder. "I trust you, Caesar. But I need you to trust more in me. I know exactly what I'm doing. Together we will take down the Theocracy and rebuild it much greater than it was before. My vision has been carefully mapped out, and we must work together. Do you have my back?"

"Of course, my Lord."

"Good." Bearyl reset the figurines to their regular positions on the map. Once he was done he grabbed one of the heavy paperweights securing the map and slammed it down over Agameru. "We're going to win, and it will be glorious."

Caesar said nothing more. Bearyl took his leave, not noticing that Caesar didn't follow. Now alone in the war room Caesar stared down at the map of Nagarea. After a moment he scrubbed his face furiously with both hands.

" _I know you have a lot to prove, Caesar, but I expected better judgment from a Silverberg."_

Caesar slammed both hands down upon the map, his breathing uneasy. He ducked his head and squeezed his eyes shut. _Did…did I not use good judgment when I joined this Army? I thought Bearyl Lutis could bring about change, but he's a man who is egotistical and uncompromising. Was it a mistake for me to come here?_

* * *

Daunte rose onto his tiptoes and balanced the box over his head. Very carefully, he tucked the wooden box onto the high shelf and sighed in relief as he settled back down onto the flats of his feet. _That's the last of it._

"Daunte, thank you so much for all your help." An eleven-year-old boy with spiky black hair and hazel eyes, dressed in a black tunic and tanned baggy pants, hurried over to him. "I thought it would take me _forever_ to sort everything out in here!"

Daunte turned to smile at the boy. "I'm glad I could help, Ichirou."

Ichirou wiped his hands on his brown slacks and grinned toothily. "Managing the Liberation Army's storage vaults is a tough job, but I'm proud to have it!"

Daunte had been very surprised when he found out that the storage vault for the entire Army was supervised by a child. At the same time though, he recognized that Ichirou was a hard worker and took a lot of pride in his job. When the boy had requested assistance, Daunte was more than happy to help him. Particularly when his own items were resting on the shelves inside the vault.

"Do we have any extra nails?" Roen came into the vault, holding a hammer. "I'm trying to repair the wall in the armory, but the wood is all rotted! I tried to ask for some more materials, but they told me there wasn't any!"

"Here." Ichirou knelt down and rummaged through an old tool box. He pulled out a small bag and handed it to Roen. "I hope these will be enough."

"Thanks, Ichirou." Roen wiped the sweat on his brow, leaving a smudge of dirt, and huffed. "I don't understand why the walls in the armory need repairing! The armory is empty!"

"But it'll be full soon enough," Ichirou told him. "Your hard work will pay off!"

"I hope so." Roen shook his head. "I wish Gunther had chosen _me_ instead of Felicity for that mission! I'd rather be fighting a horde of boars than this!"

"You'll live," Daunte laughed, slapping him on the shoulder. Roen only grumbled though and stormed out of the storage vault.

"I think we're done for the day," Ichirou said, looking at the neatly stacked boxes and items around them and nodding with satisfaction. "We can—"

"He really left?!"

Ichirou paused at the outburst outside the vault. Daunte exchanged a glance with the boy for a long moment of silence before the two of them moved towards the door to listen. Less than four meters away they saw three Liberation Army soldiers talking.

"Lorik Varra left! He really left! He took all of his allies with him, too! I don't think he's coming back!"

Ichirou audibly gasped and Daunte felt his stomach twist. _Lord Lorik Varra left the Liberation Army?_

"Does he think the Theocracy will leave him alone just because he left us?" one soldier quipped. "Sheikh Faakhir will now most surely launch a campaign against Agameru!"

"It must have been awful in Zinnia," another said softly. "It's really appalling how _blind_ those people are! Lord Varra liberated them from a tyrannical Sheikh, and what did they do in thanks? They rioted nightly and poisoned Lord Varra's soldiers! Still, to abandon us like this?! It's not our fault Zinnia didn't cooperate with us!"

"I guess the rumors were true then," the third said. "Lord Varra really must not have _wanted_ to occupy Zinnia, but did so due to pressure from Lord Bearyl."

"Lord Bearyl doesn't have much of a sympathetic ear, does he? I mean he _also_ cast out those Harmonians—"

" _No_!" Daunted hissed, looking away. As there weren't many Harmonians in Nagarea, he knew exactly who they were referring to. _Nash and Sierra! He forced them out?! I had no idea! When did they leave?!_

"—a bit creepy, but they _were_ helpful," the soldiers continued. "What is Lord Bearyl _thinking_ , treating potential Harmonian allies this way?"

Daunte closed his eyes and let out a shaky breath. _So…in the course of a single day Lord Lorik Varra quits the Liberation Army and takes all his soldiers with him. And Nash and Sierra are thrown out. What is going on? Is Lord Bearyl downsizing or is he just in a bad mood? Because none of this seems logical!_

"I-I don't like this," Ichirou said softly. He rubbed at his arms and busied himself by fiddling with some boxes. "I owe Lord Bearyl everything. I would've been sentenced to the Dark Chasm if he hadn't intervened on my behalf. But this doesn't make any sense. Why is he blowing off our allies like this? It's already really hard for us to gain any ground as a legitimate Army because a lot of citizens think we're heathens and terrorists! Lord Lorik Varra was one of our highest profile allies and Lord Bearyl drove him off?"

Daunte shared in Ichirou's apprehension. Admittedly he didn't exactly have the highest opinion of Bearyl Lutis after the man upheld their month-long suspension for a full month. He'd also refused to listen to any of Daunte's concerns—whether it be about liberating the Dark Chasm, or even regarding Tidur and her daughters.

" _Why should we be concerned about the wife of a Sheikh? As if the man would sentence his own daughters to the Dark Chasm!"_

But he would. Daunte was sure of it. Sloan obviously didn't make idle threats, and his pronouncement of his wife and daughters as traitors was a _definite_ threat. Yet Daunte had not been allowed to go back to K'alak'i Patieba to check on them, and Bearyl refused to investigate the matter. Felicity had been so overwhelmed by guilt because of it that she'd gotten sick. But all they could do was pray that Sloan leave his family alone.

It wasn't reassuring when their leader, who claimed to be a liberator, didn't give a damn about the people he was trying to liberate.

But Daunte saw how distressed Ichirou was, and in his own experience of dealing with Arin he didn't want to make the boy any more upset than he was. So he forced a smile and patted him on the shoulder. "It'll be all right. We're the good guys, remember? The people of Nagarea will remember that."

Ichirou quickly nodded and smile. "That's right, we _are_ the good guys! And the good guys always triumph! Thank you, Daunte!"

It still amazed Daunte that his simple words of reassurance had such an impact on the people around him. Dr. Yulin had told him such in the Dark Chasm, but he remembered back to that fateful night a month ago, when Lady Leknaat proclaimed him to be the Tenkai Star of the 108 Stars of Destiny. He still did not know entirely what that meant, and he hadn't seen Leknaat since then. But the more he thought about it, the more Daunte realized that yes, he did seem to have a natural power of persuasion. And while he didn't speak often, when he did the people around him seemed to… _gravitate_ towards his voice.

 _But I'm still not in a position to lead, and I don't think I_ _ **want**_ _to lead._

"Well, we're finished up in here," Ichirou said again, nodding with satisfaction at their surroundings. "I think you've done enough for the day. You can go up to the mess hall and get something to eat, or I heard Jantu is giving sparring lessons in the arena. Maybe you can stop over there if you're interested?"

"Thank you, Ichirou." Daunte had promised Arin he would meet him for lunch, but it was still a bit early for that. He decided go over to the arena to see what sort of lessons Jantu was giving. Admittedly Jantu had intimidated him considerably when they'd first met, but Daunte was impressed by how grounded Jantu was, and how strong he was as well.

A small crowd of civilians and soldiers were leaning against the rail, looking into the makeshift arena. Daunte poked his head around in time to see a soldier crawl over a rail out of the arena as Jantu shouted, "Who's up next?"

"I will!" Daunte shouted, raising his hand as he reached the open gate of the arena.

"Daunte, welcome!" Jantu smiled at him and waved him inside. At least it _looked_ like Jantu was smiling. The Kobold warrior had the head of a black greyhound dog and bright amber colored eyes, but he was easily 186 centimeters tall and had a very muscular physique. He wore a yellow sleeveless _gi_ with a black belt tied around his waist, and he had a tabarzin strapped to his back. It was easy to look up to Jantu because he always had total control over himself, and he was a formidable fighter.

"What are you giving lessons in today, Jantu?" Daunte asked him, taking a stance three meters from him.

"Dueling," Jantu said. "In my experiences a lot of the warriors here have experience on the battlefield and can read their foe accordingly. However, one-on-one duels are far less common, and I've found that not very many here have ever been in one. Have you ever been in one, Daunte?"

 _Did the beating that Sloan Faakhir give me count as a duel?_ he wondered. Instead of saying that however, he shook his head.

"Then now is as good of a time as any to learn. Here." Jantu unstrapped the tabarzin from his back and hurried over to the rail. Several weapons were set out on display there. "Your weapon is a tekko, correct? Then I'll fight with a tekko as well."

"R-Right," Daunte said. He was suddenly glad he'd stashed his tekko in his waistbag, even if they'd weighed him down for most of the morning. He clamped the tekko on around his hands. "Thank you, Jantu."

"How else can I teach you how to duel if we're not using the same weapons?" Jantu returned, wearing tekko that were twice as thick as Daunte's. "Okay, the very first thing you want to do is to not take your eyes off of your opponent once. By studying their body language and their facial features, you can predict their next move. However, there's more to it than that."

"Really?" Daunte asked.

"Oftentimes while dueling, your opponent will speak to you."

"Speak to me? Why?"

"They will taunt you to make you nervous, or they might blurt out something if _they're_ uncomfortable. If you're lucky, your opponent might be foolish enough to call out the name of an attack they have."

The soldiers around them roared with laughter, but Daunte focused on Jantu. "Why would anyone speak in a one-on-one fight? Doesn't that waste your energy?"

"Because in one-on-one duels your energy is equal," Jantu said. "You're afforded the luxury of running your mouth because you're not going to be ambushed from behind. It's just you, and the other person. You can find out many things about your opponent with a duel. Whether it be in subtle words, or the way they breathe, with enough practice you'll be able to predict their next move."

"…You said we were equals," Daunte said. "So I can't use my Rune in a duel? Why?"

"Because dueling has a degree of etiquette that is lacking in standard fights," Jantu said. "Because there is greater respect in meeting your opponent in a duel than in a standard fight. It is the respect of facing each other of your own strength, without outer assistance such as Runes. So as you can tell, many people are usually unprepared for it."

Daunte let out a shaky sigh. "No Runes. Got it."

"In dueling, there are three facets you must keep in mind: _attack, defense,_ and _deathblow_. The best way to remember these facets is to compare them to rock, paper, and scissors. In this case think of defense as rock, attack as paper, and deathblow as scissors. Rock will always beat scissors, so defense will always beat deathblow. However paper beats rock, so attack will beat defense. But scissors beats paper, so deathblow will always beat attack.

"But since this is a duel, your opponent will not stay idle long after they make a proclamation. You must listen carefully to what they tell you, and act quickly in response. Otherwise you might end up blindsided."

"What happens if I select attack and my opponent selects attack?" Daunte asked.

"Then you'll hit each other. Sometimes you'll eat hurt each other equally, other times you might deal a more powerful blow or vice versa. With deathblow, this is your strongest move in a duel. If you both select to do a deathblow, then you'll have a true power of strength and wills, and the chances of it failing for you are significant. You're better off just defending when your opponent does a deathblow."

"Why is that?"

"Because—"

"Get on with it!" a soldier complained loudly. "We haven't got all day!" various other voices shouted in agreement.

Jantu rolled his eyes. "Another time, then. Do you feel comfortable facing me in a duel? Since this is your first one I'll go easy on you, but I want you to still take this seriously. The next time you might be in a duel your life may be on the line."

Daunte nodded, and took a fighting stance. "I'm ready."

"Give us the signal when we're to start!" Jantu called out. A soldier sitting on the rail raised a whistle and blew it hard.

"Try to relax," Jantu told Daunte, readying himself. "This is only practice."

Daunte gulped and tried to stay on guard as Jantu slowly circled him. He did as he was told and kept his eyes on the Kobold. All around them the soldiers were cheering, and the majority were chanting Jantu's name. But Daunte tried to drown out their voices so he could focus on him.

"Let's do a little warmup," Jantu said suddenly.

Daunte stiffened and his mind was a whirlwind. _I-Is that an attack? It's an attack, isn't it? What am I supposed to—defend!_

He saw Jantu rush at him and Daunte immediately raised his guard. He yelped when Jantu penetrated his guard and landed two solid blows on him. Daunte staggered, still struggling to maintain his guard, and fell to one knee.

"No Daunte, you must listen!" Jantu admonished him as he jumped back. "That was an _attack_! You don't defend when I attack! Tell me, what should you do against an attack?"

"D-Deathblow," Daunte stammered, and rose onto shaky knees.

Jantu nodded his approval. "Do you need a break? It looks like I knocked the wind out of you."

Daunte started to nod until he realized something. _He's defending! I-I have to attack!_ Daunte shouted and lunged at Jantu. But Jantu's guard was much better than his and Daunte was only able to land a single punch on the Kobold.

"Good, very good!" Jantu complimented him, though he nursed his diaphragm. "That was a good attack. But now it's my turn."

That sounded like an attack to Daunte, and that meant he needed to perform a deathblow. _But what's a deathblow? Does that mean I have to strike harder than I would with an attack?!_

Jantu was already charging at him however, so Daunte quickly decided what to do. He dropped down to one knee as Jantu threw a punch at him and then swept Jantu's legs out from underneath him. It didn't trip the Kobold, but it _did_ cause him to lose his balance. Daunte took the opportunity to launch up and deliver two blows right to Jantu's face.

The shouts and the cheers began gradually shifting from supporting Jantu to supporting Daunte. Jantu shook off the blows though, but Daunte noticed his arms were unsteady. "Let's see if you can handle everything I've got."

 _That_ sounded like a deathblow, and Daunte immediately raised his guard. Jantu charged at him and threw so many punches so quickly that unfortunately Daunte couldn't dodge all of them. But he _did_ dodge enough to still have some stamina when Jantu tired from his punches and threw three into his torso. Jantu jumped away from him, but Daunte's left ear was ringing from the blow that _did_ land and he fell to one knee once more. When he raised his head though, he saw that Jantu had also fallen to one knee.

"I believe this is a draw," Jantu panted. He pulled himself to his feet. "Good job, Daunte."

The soldiers around them cheered, although others shouted complaints about their duel ending in a draw. Daunte was still nursing his cheek as he stood up, and he didn't find comfort in the fact that it felt so numb. Jantu approached him however and handed him a pot small enough to fit into Daunte's palm. "This is dragon's incense. It will take a while to feel the effects, but it will heal all of your injuries. This'll save you from having to use your Rune on yourself."

Daunte accepted the dragon incense with a nod of thanks but saw that Jantu was limping slightly. He raised his right hand. " _Howl_."

Jantu flinched and voices rose around them at the sight of seeing the Rune of Restoration in action. Once the spell finished Jantu was standing straighter than even before his duel with Daunte. "That was unnecessary, but I greatly appreciate it Daunte."

"Thank you for the lesson," Daunte said, easing his tekko off and stashing them back into his bag.

"Come back down anytime you feel like having a lesson in dueling," Jantu told him. "With some time, I can introduce you to other opponents to duels."

"I look forward to it." Daunte bowed and turned to leave the arena. Dueling indeed made things a little more difficult because it gave him less time to make his next move because his opponent was always reacting one way or another.

 _But I think I can get better at it with some practice. I just hope when I get into a real duel where my life is on the line, that I'm able to hold my own against my opponent._

* * *

"'— _a-a-ahnd to w-who I m-m-mahke my bridle—'"_

"'Bride'," Daunte gently corrected him, holding the script for _Beast and the Beast_ a little higher for Arin. They were sitting in Daunte's bed with their backs to the headboard. "The word would be 'bridle' if it had an 'L' in it."

"R-Right," Arin said, nodding. " _'—my bride moost love me—'_ "

"'Must'."

Arin sighed shortly. "I'm sorry, Brother."

"Don't apologize. You're still learning. I wish I had better materials to teach you with; reading from a script like this isn't very practical."

"At least I'm not pronouncing 'beast' as 'bast' anymore," Arin laughed.

"That's right." Daunte looked towards the table, where he'd left the container of dragon incense burning. The smell of incense had filled the room and it looked like it'd stopped burning, but Daunte no longer felt the aches and pains of his duel with Jantu. He looked back down at the script and flipped the page. "Try reading some of Beauty's lines."

Arin groaned in protest. "Daunte, do I really have to read a _girl's_ lines?"

"Well, according to the second page a _boy_ is eligible to play Beauty as well."

Arin giggled. "That would be hilarious to see!"

"I think so, too."

There was a knock at their door and both boys looked up. "Come in!" Daunte called out.

"Hi," Roen said, quickly coming in and closing the door behind them. "Did you hear about what happened with Nash and Lorik Varra?"

"Yes, I did," Daunte said grimly.

"What happened?" Arin asked.

"Bearyl Lutis made them leave," Roen said harshly, taking a seat on Arin's bed.

"W-What?" Arin looked at Daunte with confusion. "Why would Lord Bearyl make them leave?"

"He made Nash and Sierra leave, but Lorik Varra quit on his own," Daunte explained. "I overheard some soldiers talking about it."

"This isn't good," Roen said. "Our leader threw out one of his biggest allies, and skilled warriors from Harmonia? Is he out of his mind?!"

"I don't know, why don't you ask him?" Daunte sighed, shaking his head. "What are we supposed to do about it?"

"Daunte, we joined this Army because we had no other options. But we've been here for well over a month and despite everything we've done we're still treated like nuisances. Lord Bearyl won't let us forget our "betrayal" of him with Sloan Faakhir's Garrison, despite the fact that he keeps _bragging_ about saving the Falenan Royals! He doesn't ever have anything positive to say about us! Not you, not me, not Felicity, not Arin—"

"W-What?" Arin cried out, looking hurt. "H-He says bad things about me?! Why?!"

"Roen, that's enough!" Daunte said harshly, standing up from his bed. "If you have any other options for what we can do, I'll gladly hear it! Until then, stop complaining about our current circumstances because I would MUCH rather be here than back at the Dark Chasm!"

Roen looked at Daunte for a long moment of silence before he slowly nodded and stood up. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry I've been complaining so much. I-I just wish…" he wrung a hand through his hair. Since all of them had been receiving much better nutrition their hair was starting to grow out quickly and thickly, but it was still short. "I wish things were _better_. I just wish none of us were even put in this position!"

"I know," Daunte said, lowering his voice. "But there's no use wishing things different. All we can do is look forward."

"Right…" Roen forced a smile at them. "I'm sorry for lashing out at you guys. I'm just venting because I spent all day in that damned armory trying to fix it up and I didn't get one word of thanks. Just some more complaints. I'm pretty tired though, so I'm going to go to bed early."

"What did Lord Bearyl say about me?" Arin asked.

But Roen shook his head at him. "Don't worry about it Arin. Have a good night, guys."

"What did Lord Bearyl say about me?" Arin repeated more forcefully after Roen left.

"I don't know," Daunte said, which was only a half-truth. He'd never heard Bearyl Lutis directly regarding any complaints about Arin, but he'd heard rumors about supposed… _gossip_ between Bearyl and Varnaz. If the rumors were true, then the upper chain of command of the Liberation Army thought Arin was a liability and was in the way. Daunte didn't like thinking about it though, and he didn't want to think the rumors were true.

 _But I'd heard Bearyl Lutis say these exact same words about the Falenans. Anything is possible._

Another knock at the door startled them and Daunte looked towards it. "Did you forget something, Roen?" he called out.

"Oh, am I interrupting something?"

Both Daunte and Arin straightened a little at the sound of this voice and Daunte quickly opened the door. "L-Lord Caesar?"

"Caesar is fine," the Army strategist greeted them, smiling his usual lazy smile. "I have no use for titles."

"Please, come in," Daunte said, gesturing him inside. Arin's eyes went wide when Caesar stepped into the room fully. "Hi there kid," Caesar greeted him. "How are you feeling today?"

"I feel okay," Arin said, managing a smile.

"What can we do for you this evening?" Daunte asked, closing the door behind him.

"I imagine the both of you heard the _good_ news," Caesar said, his tone dipping a little as he took a seat on the windowsill.

"Does Lord Bearyl really say bad things about me?" Arin asked.

Caesar twitched, but hung onto his smile. "I'm afraid I don't know what you're talking about, Arin."

"Oh." Arin breathed out a sigh of relief.

Daunte hadn't missed Caesar's twitch but decided not to press it. "Why did Lord Bearyl throw so many of our allies out?"

"Lord Lorik Varra was unable to maintain stability in Zinnia so he withdrew his forces without Lord Bearyl's permission," Bearyl explained. "Lord Bearyl didn't exactly lend a sympathetic ear to Lord Lorik's dilemma, so Lord Lorik quit."

"And what about Nash and Sierra?"

"Well, Lord Bearyl wanted to know some secrets about Harmonia. He also wanted to use Nash to secure an alliance with Harmonia. Nash refused on both counts, so Lord Bearyl threw him out."

Daunte rubbed a hand over his face. "But…Nash admitted he was a spy, right? Even though I don't agree with Lord Bearyl's decision, didn't he realize Lord Bearyl would've asked him these things eventually?"

"It was inevitable," Caesar agreed. "But our Lordship should've realized that a spy working for another country was not going to simply spill secrets. He _also_ should've realized that a spy was probably the _last_ person in any position to broker an alliance between two powers."

Daunte started at this. Caesar was being openly critical of Bearyl Lutis. Remembering what Caesar had said to him before their campaign on the Garrison, he was very surprised to hear Caesar say these things. "Why are you telling me this?" he asked finally. "Isn't it your job as the Army strategist to publicly agree with all of your commanding officer's decisions, no matter how bad they are?"

Caesar spread his arms out. "This isn't exactly public, is it?"

"…No," Daunte agreed.

Caesar looked over his shoulder out the window. "Three years ago I participated in a war called the Second Fire Bringer War. It was difficult work, trying to unit diverse forces who held animosity for each other, but in the end we succeeded. I can't necessarily take _all_ of the credit because there were so many people who worked hard towards the same goal, but it was great to be one of them."

"…Was there 108 people participating?" Daunte asked.

"Huh?" Caesar asked, looking back towards him.

"Never mind."

"Well, in any case we succeeded. I came here to Nagarea just a little over a year ago because I had heard plenty of stories about how this isolated little country was suffering under corruption. I saw the opportunity to once again help make change, and…to admittedly hone my own skills as a strategist. I met Lord Bearyl Lutis, and it was _quite_ an amazing first meeting. I've yet to meet a man with more enthusiasm and charisma for a single cause than him. I could see the passion he held for wanting to make changes and I couldn't help but _want_ to join his cause."

Caesar frowned deeply. "But charisma and enthusiasm…I'm afraid can also serve to cover up poor judgment and a massive ego. I've stuck by my Lord through everything since then. I've listened to him, offered my own advice, and have ducked my head every single time he's refused to listen to me. It's my duty as a strategist to stand by my leader no matter what." His hands dug into the windowsill, his knuckles turning white. "No matter how many people die. No matter how many allies we lose. No matter—" he didn't finish the sentence.

Daunte felt incredibly uncomfortable seeing Caesar so destitute about their circumstances. He looked at Arin and saw that his little brother looked more upset now than he had over hearing that Bearyl Lutis was saying bad things about him.

Caesar then sat up and forced a smile at them. "I think I've bothered you both long enough. Have a good night." He took his leave, leaving the brothers staring after him in stunned silence.


	15. Chapter Two: Part Two

As a reminder, both marriage polls are closing this Saturday so make sure to get your vote in on who you would like to be Haswar and Lymsleia's husbands.

* * *

Part Two

Daunte stood in front of the mirror and raised his arms. He held the tekko on his hands. His raised his right arm high to the same level as his head, while his left arm lowered and was parallel to his left leg. He bent his knees slightly, his left leg forward while his right leg was back.

He stared at his posture for a long moment before he nodded and straightened. " _That's_ the stance I need to take in combat."

"How do I look?" Roen asked, turning to face Daunte. He'd taken a forward stance with his bolo knife, holding the weapon vertical while his left hand directly behind this blade, and his right leg bent forward while his left was bent back. "Jantu has been giving me helpful pointers in how to properly hold my weapon."

Me, too," Daunte said, removing his tekko. "Has he taught you dueling?"

"He's offered, but dueling doesn't seem practical to me. Most of the soldiers we've fought haven't had any interest in running their mouths at us in the middle of a fight." Roen relaxed his stance and sheathed his bolo knife. "I heard Gunther's group would be coming back today, so that means Felicity will be back today."

"Yeah," Daunte began, but before he could say more a uniformed Liberation Army soldier approached them. "Daunte, Roen."

"What is it?"

"Lord Bearyl has summoned you both to meet with you." The soldier then left without hearing their reply.

"Huh," Roen said, looking at Daunte. "I wonder if he's going to throw _us_ out too."

Daunte didn't answer. It'd been three days since Caesar had visited him in his room. Three days since the strategist had basically revealed to Daunte that he didn't have any faith in their leader anymore. It felt awkward to be on the receiving end of such revelations, particularly since Daunte didn't have a position in the Army appropriate enough to hear the strategist talk about their leader in such a way. It puzzled him as to why Caesar had sought him out to tell him these things. If Caesar was having problems with Bearyl Lutis, then he should've taken his concerns to someone who could actually make a difference. Like Varnaz, or Allise.

 _Is it because of the Rune of Restoration? Maybe it's because I have a True Rune that he confided in me in such a way._

Daunte was also concerned, however, about whether or not Bearyl had found out about his talk with Caesar. Daunte hadn't told anyone about it, not even Roen, and Arin hadn't told anyone either. It didn't seem appropriate to just gossip about such a thing.

They made their way upstairs, catching snippets of conversation as usual. While most everyone still spoke positively about their chances, others were apprehensive about Lorik Varra's departure and Bearyl's proclamation that the Liberation have zero contact with Agameru. Daunte kept his head ducked and hurried upstairs.

"Don't waste my time."

Daunte paused on the top step. In front of the doors to the war room, Bearyl Lutis was addressing a man in his late forties. The man wore a black bowler hat and was dressed in a black tunic and baggy pants. A small cart was behind the man, and Daunte saw various items sticking out of it, including a soroban and a balance scale.

"My Lord, I assure you that I'm not wasting your time," the stranger told Bearyl. "It has taken me twenty years, but I've perfected this formula and I just it will be essential to the Army."

"As you have told me, Mr. Eliasen, you are not a warrior and you have no political connections," Bearyl retorted. "So I don't see how you would be essential to the Liberation Army."

"Ah," Eliasen answered. "But what I offer you is a chance to bring Nagarea into the modern age, to compete with the economies of the world. As I'm sure you're well aware, Nagarea is one of the few countries in the world that does not use the universal currency of potch. However, with my expertise." He gestured to his cart. "I've devised a way to _convert_ Nagarea's bits into potch. I've perfected the currency conversion between the two, and I can provide for you the means—"

"Take your business elsewhere," Bearyl interrupted. He waved his hand and two soldiers stepped forward. "This currency conversion you speak of means nothing to me. I can't think of a single use for it, particularly since we have no foreign allegiances and the fact that potch is worthless here. Do not waste anymore of my time."

Eliasen sighed, and shook his head. "I'm sorry you feel I wasted your time, my Lord. But I can clearly see you lack economical vision." But there was no bitterness in his demeanor as he grabbed his cart and steered it towards the stairs. He nodded to Daunte and Roen as he began his descent.

"There you two are," Bearyl called out to them. "I've been waiting for you." He went back into the war room without another word.

Daunte however took a moment to watch Eliasen leave, his stomach clenching slightly. _He said that he perfected a formula to convert bits into potch? Surya said potch was the universal currency…nobody else but us is using bits. Why wouldn't Lord Bearyl want to have this man join him? Currency conversion sounds very useful!_

"Daunte," Roen hissed to him, and Daunte snapped to attention. The two of them headed into the war room. Caesar was standing at the back, adjusting the figurines on the large map, and Varnaz was also standing at the table. He glared at Daunte and Roen as they came in, but Bearyl stepped forward to address them.

"Well," Bearyl said curtly. "While I appreciate the work you've both have done here, neither of you are really standing out, are you? Neither of you have offered me anything that sets you apart from any other soldier."

"I have a Fire Rune," Roen said. There was a little bit of bite in his voice.

"A-And I have the Rune of Restoration," Daunte said.

"The point is," Bearyl continued as though they hadn't spoken. "That we need to spread our influence and gain new allies. I'm sending the two of you out on an expedition to recruit people to my cause. We need every man and woman we can get, and we need strong and seasoned warriors. My castle is open to you to take any available warrior with you, but that also means I expect you both to use my resources wisely and bring back people who will be useful to me. Got it?"

"Y-Yes, sir," Daunte said, bowing. He felt a spike of exhilaration fill his body as he bowed. _H-He's allowing us to leave the castle! Now we can go check on Tidur and her daughters!_

"Gunther returned, so unless either Felicity or him are too tired they will also be available to you," Caesar said, stepping forward. "But speak to me directly when you're ready to assemble your group."

"R-Right."

"Once you assemble your group, hurry and be on your way," Bearyl told him curtly.

Daunte nodded and quickly approached Caesar. "Who is available to come with me?"

"Gunther, Allise, Felicity, Jantu, Varnaz—"

" _No_ ," Varnaz interrupted curtly. "A seasoned warrior like myself doesn't _babysit_ children like these."

"—well, you have four people to accompany you," Caesar told Daunte. "If you would like to utilize them all, I will summon them all to come here."

Daunte felt bad about calling Gunther and Felicity forward after they just finished a job, but he nodded. "If they're available, I would be glad to bring them with me."

Less than ten minutes later, they had assembled in the war room. To Daunte's surprise, both Gunther and Felicity were very enthusiastic about going back on the road

"I'm ready whenever you are!" Gunther laughed.

"It feels like old times," Felicity said.

Allise and Jantu also surprised Daunte with their enthusiasm. "At your service," the Kobold warrior greeted, bowing slightly.

"Well, this should be fun," Allise said in a most carefree way.

"I want the six of you to go out and get recruits for the Liberation Army," Bearyl told them. "I'm giving you all two weeks to go out and find as many people as you can to fight for our cause."

"Yes, sir." They all bowed to Bearyl.

"And you are forbidden to make contact with Agameru," Bearyl added. "You are not to step foot in that town or associate with anyone in that town. Is that understood?"

"Yes, sir." The reply was significantly more somber.

"Good. Now be on your way and gather useful recruits for me."

"And be careful," Caesar added. "Ever since we were driven away from the Garrison the security in towns has increased significantly. And since you guys thwarted the kidnapping plot of the Falenan royals, they will _definitely_ be on the lookout for you. Just be discreet and look for people who have a resolve to join us. Don't worry about trying to convert total believers in the Theocracy yet."

* * *

"Okay," Gunther said, turning his horse around to face them after they left the grove of trees. "We have two weeks to scour the countryside and look for recruits. Where shall we go first?"

"Can we stop by K'alak'i Patieba first?" Daunte asked him.

Gunther frowned in confusion. "That town is awfully close to the Dark Chasm. I hope you're not planning a siege, because just the six of us can't liberate the Dark Chasm."

"It's about Tidur and her daughters," Felicity spoke up. "I mentioned them to you during the last mission we went on."

"Ah," Gunther said, nodding his understanding. "We didn't have time to stop there and check up on them. Hmm, this recruiting mission _would_ be a good opportunity though."

"I wish Oboro had stuck around," Roen said. "Then we could've hired him to look in on Tidur and her daughters."

"Don't we already owe him for his finding of the Falenan royals?" Felicity wondered.

"If I may change the subject," Allise said. "We can take a shortcut through Winter Hill so we can avoid the Bridge of Faith. Well more specifically, we can cross through the Great Cistern to get to the shortcut. We'll have to abandon the horses, but it'll be quicker than riding through Winter Hill."

"Right, the Great Cistern," Daunte said. He rummaged through his bag and pulled out a small box. "There's someone in the Great Cistern I have to deliver this to."

"That's a sound set," Jantu observed, leaning in to see. "So there's someone here in Nagarea that has the Sound Rune?"

"Oh right, that one woman," Gunther said, grinning. "I can't wait to meet her again."

"The Great Cistern has many hidden entrances, and I happen to know a couple," Allise said. "I'll guide us to where we need to go."

"Since we're going to Winter Hill, maybe we can convince Cairoh to join us?" Roen mused.

Daunte nodded. "Let's get as many allies as we can."

Daunte had seen everyone but Jantu fight in party comment, and he was immensely impressed with the Kobold's strength and resilience. As he wielded a tabarzin, his right hand was equipped with a Minotaur Rune that made his strikes even more deadly. The Rune allowed for him to strike several foes as once, but Daunte saw that the strength of the Rune also quickly took its toll on Jantu and he would have to rest for a brief period. Gunther described his condition as being "unbalanced", but after a brief rest Jantu would quickly rejoin the fight. Jantu was also very capable of taking several blows from the enemies. He was stung and rammed, and not once did he wobble. It was impressive, but his resiliency made Daunte a little jealous.

 _I hope I can develop into such a formidable warrior too._

They quickly reached Winter Hill, and Daunte quickly looked skywards. He remembered the small golden dragon he'd seen the last time he'd come to Winter Hill, and the girl who had commanded it, and he hoped to see them again. But he saw no dragons in the sky, and he didn't see the girl with her elaborate outfit. _Maybe she's no longer around here?_ he sighed with disappointment.

"Is everything okay, Daunte?" Felicity asked him.

"I was looking for the girl with the dragon," Daunte told her. "I thought she would be an excellent recruit for the Army. After all, if she can command a wild beast like a dragon then she _has_ to be the perfect warrior for the Army!"

"Oh, I remember her!" Gunther exclaimed. "Yeah, she had that little dragon at her beck and call! It was impressive!"

"Are you both on about that silly story?" Allise sighed, shaking her head.

"Allise, we truly saw her! It was a teenaged girl who had a baby dragon under her command!"

"Let's focus our energy on people who actually exist, Gunther."

"Aw, Allise—"

Daunte knew that Allise wouldn't believe them until they actually _found_ the girl and her dragon, so he didn't argue with her. _I wonder how many outrageous stories Gunther's told Allise that she doesn't believe him in this._

They followed Allise through Winter Hill towards the secret entrance she had mentioned. Daunte almost asked why they didn't simply go back to the main entrance, but then he remembered their encounter with the Matron in the Great Cistern and that the security would be even tighter in there. _There's already monsters to contend with, along with contaminated water. Hopefully we won't run into any more problems._

"It's just over this hill," Allise shouted over her shoulder. They guided their horses up the steep hill and over the top. At the bottom of the hill Daunte saw something that caused him to pull the reins of his horse and stop.

"Hello there!" Cairoh called up to them, waving. In the grass three meters away Daunte saw a manhole buried in the grass. They rode down the hill towards the item merchant, who was grinning from ear to ear. "You guys are just in luck! I have many new items to show you!"

"How is business here in Winter Hill?" Gunther asked him as they dismounted their horses.

Cairoh's smile faded and he shook his head. "Not as good as I'd hoped. Surprisingly, not a lot of travelers are willing to buy wares from an unlicensed merchant. I'm going to have to take my business elsewhere, it seems."

"Any rare items today?" Daunte asked him.

Cairoh shook his head. "I haven't found anyone willing to trade with me. That stupid, blasted Merchant's Pledge!" he wrung his fists and growled. "I would still have my livelihood if it weren't for that blasted Pledge!"

"Why not join us?" Daunte suddenly blurted out. "We could definitely use a shop like yours at headquarters."

"Remember that we've been trying to get him to join us and he's refused," Gunther told Daunte.

But Cairoh looked thoughtful. He looked mournfully at his cart. "It…I've done nothing but complain, haven't I? But what good is complaining? It's not going to improve my circumstances, and it won't remove the Merchant's Pledge. We merchants will still have to recite the damned thing every single year, so long as the Theocracy is in control."

Gunther gaped at him in shock. "Y-You mean—!"

Cairoh grinned at them. "I want to make a difference. And the only way I can make a difference is if I joined you guys, right? Very well, then. From this day forward, you will have Cairoh and his wares at your full service!"

"We're happy to have you," Daunte said, shaking his head.

Cairoh nodded to him. "My Lord, I will head on to the Liberation Army headquarters to set up my shop! It should be all ready for you by the time you get back!"

"Would you mind taking our horses back with you?" Allise asked, dismounting. The others followed suit. "We'll need to travel the rest of the way on foot anyways."

"Of course I will. Have safe travels and I will see you soon!"

Within a few short minutes Cairoh had his cart packed and he was riding off towards Liberation Army headquarters with their horses. Daunte smiled as he watched him go. _That's my first recruit._ He turned and saw that Gunther was gaping at him. "What is it?"

"Do you have any idea how long we've been trying to recruit him?" Gunther asked him. "And yet he finally agreed after you only asked him one time? That's incredible, kid! We _really_ ought to use you for negotiations!"

"B-But I didn't do anything special," Daunte said defensively. "All I did was ask him to join."

"And he accepted your offer when he didn't accept mine, or Lord Bearyl's." Gunther shook his head. "We should have you ask _all_ our potentials recruits to join. They'll definitely join us if _you_ ask them!"

"W-Well I don't know about that," Daunte said.

"Then it's settled," Allise agreed. "Daunte will speak for us when we approach a recruit to join."

"That sounds reasonable," Roen said, grinning.

Daunte sighed heavily. _Well if it makes them feel better I'll gladly speak to people we want to recruit. But I'm probably not going to be able to recruit every single person I ask._

"So here's the secret entrance into the Great Cistern," Allise said, gesturing to the manhole cover. Jantu knelt down to remove the cover. "If we head west of this positon through the Cistern, we should reach the southeast in less than six hours."

"That _does_ save us some time," Felicity said cheerfully. She looked down the hole with apprehension though. "But I've heard many stories about the Cistern—"

"And they're all true," Gunther said apologetically. "With any luck we should be able to find and purify some contaminated water down there."

"I would rather not see _any_ contaminated water," Allise said softly.

The group carefully climbed down the ladder into the darkness of the Great Cistern. Halfway down the ladder however, Daunte heard the familiar singing and he was flooded with relief. _Liron! She must be nearby! We won't have to scour the Cistern looking for her!_

"Is that singing?" Jantu asked after they had all reached the bottom of the ladder.

"That's _"The Song of Mission"_ ," Allise said, craning her neck to hear. "A very popular Nagarean hymn."

"No, no, no!" the singing abruptly stopped and a woman's voice was shouting. "That's not how it's supposed to sound!"

"And that's Liron," Gunther said, grinning. "Daunte, I hope you have that sound set ready."

"You speak of her with such familiarity," Allise said suddenly. Her tone was soft and she was smiling a humorless smile. "You must know her very well, Gunther."

"Not really," Gunther said quickly. He definitely had a defensive sound to his tone. "She only gave us her first name, so that's the name I refer to her as."

"I see." Allise still held onto her smile though, and Gunther's expression was a little strained.

"I wonder where all the other contaminated vaults are?" Jantu mused aloud.

"They've been quarantined so there's no risk of them infecting the rest of the water supply. However we still found sections of water here contaminated so we should be on the lookout."

The group made their way towards Liron. Daunte was relieved to find the same type of monsters in the Great Cistern that they had encountered before. Their skills had increased since then, and so fighting the monsters was relatively easy. He was also pleased that he found no extra security down there.

 _But they would have to contend with the monsters if they_ did _come down here._

They found Liron in the same vault they had when they'd come down into the Great Cistern to rescue Archana. It was surprising to find the woman still down there, healthy and unhurt, and still so focused on her Sound Rune.

"Why won't you work the way I need you to?" Liron shouted at her Rune. She was on the verge of tears.

"Liron?" Daunte asked.

Liron thankfully didn't shriek this time but she quickly turned to face him. "O-Oh, you're back. I'm sorry for shouting, but I'm at my wits end! I don't know how to get my Sound Rune to work without a _sound set_!"

"Like this one?" Daunte asked, reaching into his bag and pulling out the box with the word _'sound set 2'_ stamped on it.

Liron's eyes went wide and she grabbed the box from Daunte. She pushed up the lid and looked inside the box, and her eyes widened even more. "Yes…yes, yes, _yes_! This is a sound set! This is what I need! Where did you find this? Are you giving this to me?"

"It's all yours," Daunte reassured her.

"Oh, thank you! Thank you so much!" Liron threw her arms around Daunte and hugged him tight.

"Hey, can I get a hug too?" Gunther joked. Allise scoffed behind him.

"Here, let me give you all a demonstration as a way of showing my appreciation!" Liron let Daunte go and spun around so that her back was to them. She bent over and opened the box again. Daunte couldn't see what she was doing with the sound set, but he heard several clicking noises. There was then a sudden burst of light, like a flashbulb, and then Liron was quickly on her feet. "There!"

"What did you do?" Felicity asked.

"Now I can use my Sound Rune the way it's meant to be used," Liron said. She raised her hand and pressed it over her throat. The Sound Rune glowed on her back of her hand briefly, and then she dropped her hand. "There, that should do it!"

Daunte's jaw dropped and the others shouted with shocked. From Liron's cute and feminine face a very deep and _masculine_ voice spoke as though it were perfectly natural. Liron laughed with this new voice and clapped her hands. "I did it! I finally did it!"

"T-That's incredible!" Gunther sputtered.

Liron pressed a hand back over her throat and her Rune glowed again. "With this Rune, I can alter anyone's voice," she said, her voice returning to normal. "Here, I'll do the same for you!" she pressed her hand over Daunte's throat and the Rune glowed. "Now, try saying something!"

Daunte was almost afraid to. He could hear his breathing, and he heard the immediate changes in his voice from just his breathing alone. "…Something," he said finally, and grabbed at his throat as he heard that same deep, masculine voice coming from his own mouth.

Roen, Felicity, and Gunther shrieked with laughter at this sudden change in Daunte. "Oh, that voice is _perfect_ for you kid!" Gunther slapped him on the shoulder. "It'll drive women crazy!"

"Do you like it?" Liron asked him.

Daunte _was_ fascinated that his voice had been altered by the power of a Rune, but he much preferred his own voice. "This is incredible, but I would like my own voice back."

"No, you should surprise Arin with this voice!" Felicity teased. "It would give him quite a shock!"

"Understood," Liron said. She pressed her hand to his throat again and restored his normal voice. She giggled with delight. "I'm just so happy right now! The Sound Rune is finally responding to me—and it's all thanks to you! How can I ever repay you?"

As relieved as Daunte was to have his voice back, he immediately saw the value in Liron's Sound Rune. If she could alter voices in such a drastic way with different sound sets, it could make reconnaissance a _lot_ easier for the Liberation Army. "W-Would you like to join the Liberation Army?"

"Liberation Army?" Liron looked thoughtful for a long moment before smiling and nodding. "I would be more than happy to lend myself to your cause! Consider both myself and my Sound Rune at your service!"

Daunte was honestly shocked that he was able to recruit two people so quickly, but he accepted her handshake and laughed. "Welcome aboard then."

"Wonderful! Would you like me to join your party now, or go to your headquarters?"

Daunte wondered _how_ Liron would know how to get to their headquarters, but he already had a full party and knew she would be of better service for the time being at the castle. "Please, go on ahead to our headquarters. It is due north of here in a grove of trees."

"Understood. I will see you all back there!" Liron gathered her things and took off running. She rounded the corridor and disappeared out of sight.

"Will she be all right by herself?" Jantu asked.

"If she throws that voice up again she'll scare the pants off of anybody!" Gunther laughed.

"Well, that's two recruits," Allise said. She smiled at Daunte. "You're off to a _very_ good start."

"Thank you," Daunte said, nodding. "Let's hurry and get to K'alak'i Patieba."

"Right," Felicity said softly. "I pray to Nagar that Tidur and her daughters are all right."

"I know Sloan Faakhir isn't the greatest guy, but would he _really_ bring harm to his estranged wife and daughters?" Gunther asked. "I mean, he's left them alone thus far. Would he really go after them like this?"

"Yes, he would," Daunte said grimly.

"Anything is possible," Allise added softly. "People don't change just because of marriage."

"Then let's hurry," Gunther agreed.

* * *

Navigating the Great Cistern took a little over six hours, as Allise had predicted, and by the time they found another secret exit and came out into the southeastern side of Winter Hill, night had fallen. They made camp for the night but set out as quickly as possible the following morning for K'alak'i Patieba. Without their horses it took a long time to cover ground, but they moved quickly out of Winter Hill and into the Rocky Plains.

Luckily they did not meet many monsters in either terrain and were able to reach K'alak'i Patieba by the late morning. The town was still bustling with activity, and Daunte didn't get any sort of vibe that something sinister had happened. He felt awkward about being back there and for a moment he looked to the eastern horizon forlornly.

"What's the matter?" Gunther asked him.

"The Dark Chasm is that way," Daunte said, nodding in that direction. "I don't like being so close to that awful place, knowing that the other children are suffering, while I'm running around free and not helping them in any way."

"…Yeah," Felicity agreed, hugging her arms. "That place still gives me nightmares, but we escaped. But I can't help but wonder if other kids are suffering in any way because of our escape."

"I understand your concerns," Allise told them. "But the six of us can't take on the Dark Chasm by ourselves. We would need a much larger force to do that, and that's currently beyond our means to do."

 _We had five hundred soldiers to seize one Garrison,_ Daunte thought bitterly. _Granted we don't have those numbers anymore since Lorik Varra left us, but we_ _ **did**_ _have good enough numbers to take down a force of three hundred. There isn't_ _ **nearly**_ _as many guards as that at the Dark Chasm! So why won't Bearyl Lutis consider liberating it?_

But Daunte knew there was no use getting upset over it. He would simply have to keep pressing the issue of the Dark Chasm to Bearyl Lutis whenever he got on their leader's good side. _Hopefully this recruitment mission will get me back on his good side._

"So where is the Sheikh's family?" Gunther asked as they reached K'alak'i Patieba's town square. "I don't see any damaged property. And I'm sure if they were arrested it would be the talk of the town, but I'm not hearing any such gossip."

"They run the inn, which is over there," Roen said, pointing. He breathed out a quick sigh of relief. "Oh thank Nagar! There's no property damage!"

Daunte was also relieved to see Tidur's inn in relatively good condition. The front door looked strikingly different than before, but he had to remind himself that soldiers had broken down the front door looking for them the last time he was in town.

"Let's go check on them then," Allise said. "If the Sheikh left them alone, then we can also try offering them asylum."

"If we offer asylum to the Sheikh's family, he will surely bring his full fury down upon us," Jantu warned. "Granted if he's not _already_ brought his full fury down upon them."

Daunte didn't want to think about it and they tried to look as unassuming as possible as they headed for the inn. He saw wanted posters attached to an announcement board in the square, but nobody around them gave them a second glance. Well, except for Jantu, but Daunte suspected that had more to do with the fact that he was a Kobold and not because they recognized him as a Liberation Army member.

"Please let them be all right," Felicity prayed softly. Daunte's heart was pounding in his throat as they reached the door. He almost knocked, but his anxiety prevented him from doing so. He opened the door to the inn and peeked inside. The interior still looked clean and orderly, but he didn't see Tidur or her daughters at all. He stepped further inside. "Hello?" he called out hesitantly. "Ms. Tidur? Are you here?"

"I'm coming," came the immediate reply. The tone of voice was so easygoing that they all breathed out a massive sigh of relief. _She's all right._

"Welcome to my in—oh!" Tidur cried out in shock when she saw them. Footsteps quickly sounded from the hallway behind her and Esther and Ciana came into view. Esther yelped when she saw them, and Ciana didn't react at all. "Oh my goodness, you've returned!"

"…Huh," Gunther sighed as he took Tidur's appearance in. "I think you're the most beautiful woman I've ever seen."

"As you have said to nearly every pretty woman you've ever met," Allise said, folding her arms over her chest.

"Ms. Tidur, are you all right?" Felicity said, stepping forward. "Nobody has come here to harass you, have they?"

"What?" Tidur asked with honest confusion. She quickly shook her head. "No, of course not! Who would harass us?"

" _Why_ would anyone harass us?" Esther said dangerously. She stepped in front of her mother. "What have you all done now?!"

"Where is the sick boy?" Ciana asked.

"A-Arin is being taken care of," Daunte told her.

"Oh, so he's all right?" Tidur asked. She sighed with relief and smiled. "I'm so glad to hear that. I was so concerned about his health the last time you all were here."

"You didn't answer my question!" Esther exploded. "Why are you concerned about us?! What have you done?! Have you put us in danger?!"

"That remains to be seen," Allise said honestly. She looked at Tidur. "My Lady, has Sheikh Sloan Faakhir approached you in any way with threats?"

Tidur looked at Allise. She blinked once, then twice. "You," she said finally. "You are Sheikh Keha Hale's wife, are you not? It's been a long time, my Lady."

"I'm his ex-wife," Allise corrected gently. "But never mind about me. Are you three all right?"

"Yes, we are," Tidur answered her. "Are we in danger in any way?"

"Have you heard anything from your husband at all?"

"No, I haven't. We haven't spoken in three years."

Daunte gaped at her in shock. _It's been over a month since we attacked Faakhir's Garrison and accidentally outed Tidur as being the one who saved us. A man like him would not simply sit and let a grudge simmer. He would've and_ _ **should've**_ _acted out on it by now. Yet he hasn't? He's said_ _ **nothing**_ _to Tidur or even the Grand Citadel about what Tidur did?! Why?_

"Maybe we should take this conversation somewhere a little more private," Allise said. "I know we're imposing on you, Lady Tidur, but I think it's best we speak elsewhere."

"All right," Tidur said, nodding. "I have a private sitting room down the hallway." She gestured down the way she had come. "Go and make yourselves comfortable. Girls, come with me into the kitchen to prepare some tea."

"Mom, is this okay?" Esther asked. She was no longer speaking angrily, but she looked concerned.

"Of course it is," Tidur reassured her. She smiled at Daunte and the others. "The sitting room is the third door on the left."

Tidur and her daughters left to go into the kitchen, and the group went into the sitting room. It was cozy and beautifully decorated, and the windows were beautiful as well. _Esther must have spent a lot of work on these,_ Daunte thought as he looked at the windows.

"Oh, my heart is still pounding," Gunther sighed, sitting down on one of the couches. "What a beauty! I can't believe a bastard like Sloan Faakhir is married to such a woman! What an idiot for throwing her away!"

"She has…changed," Allise said, slowly sitting down beside Gunther. "I only met her a couple of times when I was married to…that man, but Lady Tidur was different then. She still has a pleasant air around her, but she seemed…content before. Fulfilled, even. Now she seems different. Much sadder."

"She has a very striking scar on her face," Jantu said. "I wonder where she got it from."

Daunte didn't answer any of their wonderings. He'd seen Tidur's memory and he knew the truth about her marriage to Sloan. _He scarred her face, and was also verbally abusive. She must have put up with such for a long time. But it's strange…Allise said that Tidur use to be happy? Was Tidur just better at hiding her pain back then?_

He fidgeted where he stood, and idly opened the drawers on a desk he'd found in front of the window. In the top drawer however, he found a 3x5 picture frame that was face down. Curious against his will, Daunte picked up the frame and turned it over. He was surprised by what he saw.

It was Esther and an unknown boy around her age. They were sitting together, holding hands, and it looked like they were laughing about something. Daunte was surprised by the picture, and wondered why Tidur would hide the photograph of Esther with a boy. He touched his index finger to the glass of the picture frame, and flinched as the Rune of Restoration suddenly reacted to it. _What?!_ He squeezed his eyes shut.

"You have a lot of nerve showing yourself here, boy."

Daunte opened his eyes. He was no longer standing in the sitting room. He was standing in a white parlor filled with expensive furniture. He gaped as he saw Esther standing in front of him at the window, holding the scarlet curtain in one hand. The girl was dressed in a shapeless mint colored dressed with a matching thin veil. Her honey blonde hair was loose under her veil, and her gray eyes were wide—

 _Wait. Gray eyes?_ Daunte leaned in close to the girl. _Wait a minute! Esther has brown eyes, doesn't she?_

"Trespassing onto the property of a cleric with a weapon is a grave offense," an angry voice boomed outside. "You will tell me right now why you are here!"

"I already explained why I'm here, sir," came the crisp reply. It was the voice of a boy, fresh out of puberty. Daunte quickly looked around the curtain to see what was going on outside.

"I'm here for Tidur." A young teenaged boy dressed in a long-sleeved dark silver sherwani was facing off against two men in white cleric robes. His left hand was holding a sword's scabbard and he wore a fierce expression on his young face. "I'm here for her hand."

"My daughter is already betrothed," the first man snapped, his hand clenched into fists at his sides. "She has already been promised to a more worthy suitor than you. Do not disgrace yourself further with your posturing and leave, boy!"

"My name is Sloan Faakhir, _sir_ ," the boy shot back, and Daunte jumped back in shock. "And I'm well within my rights to be here. Per Nagarean law a betrothal will be null and void if the suitor is bested by another. I'm here to exercise my right within that law to claim Tidur as _my_ bride."

"Is this a joke, my friend?" the second man said to Tidur's father. "Am I really to play a game of swords with this _child_?"

Daunte's mouth slowly hung open. He looked down at the girl at his side—Tidur—and back at the two clerics. _Did…did I hear correctly? T-That man is Tidur's fiancée? But that can't be right! She's still a child, and he's a full-grown man!_

"I challenge you," Sloan sneered at the man in question. He tossed a white glove into the dirt at the man's feet. "Per Nagarean law the winner will be Tidur's betrothed."

The man swept down and scooped up the glove, but wrung it with fury. "A man such as I will not take part in these childish games! Be off with you and don't meddle in the affairs of adults!"

"Yes, you're an adult," Sloan replied. "An adult who arranged himself to be engaged to his best friend's daughter. Tidur only just started wearing veils, have you no shame? Or are you so pathetic of a man that you can't find a woman _your own age_ to marry?!"

"To hell with you!" the man roared, throwing the glove back at Sloan. The man drew his own sword. "If you want a fight, _boy_ , then I will gladly give you one!"

"This is unnecessary," Tidur's father snapped. He glared at Sloan. "I do not authorize this. I would never allow my daughter to marry someone as _low_ in society as you!"

"Yet you'll engage her to a man over thirty years older than her just because he's a cleric and your best friend?" Sloan shot back. "You're no better than he is!"

"Let me silence this brat once and for all," Tidur's fiancée sneered, raising his sword into the ox position horizontal over his head. "This will be an easy fight for me!"

Sloan did not answer the man's boast. Instead he drew his own sword and assumed the roof position. Daunte hearing heavy breathing to his right and looked at Tidur. The girl looked like she was on the verge of tears and nearly hyperventilating. She was gripping the curtain tight in her fist.

"Tidur." A woman came to her side. Daunte assumed from the woman's features and demeanor that this was Tidur's mother. "Tidur, I understand you did not want this. However, our lives are shaped in a way that we can't always get what we want. Hile is a good man who would take very good care of you. Do you think that child out there can provide for you in any way?"

Daunte stared at this woman incredulously, but Tidur didn't seem to hear her. She was still looking outside at the swordfight going on. Daunte turned to look to, only to hear a shout of pain.

Outside, the fiancée was kneeling in the dirt grabbing at his right arm. There was a huge gash on it and blood had soaked down his white sleeve. Sloan stood over him, completely unhurt, and pointing the tip of his sword at the fiancée. "Do you yield?" he asked.

"Wait a minute—" Tidur's father began.

" _Do you yield_?!" Sloan shouted.

"Yes!" the fiancée wailed.

"This means nothing!" Tidur's father quickly shouted as Sloan sheathed his sword. "As a cleric I naturally outrank you, and I declare this fight to be unauthorized! Now remove yourself from—get back here!"

Sloan was walking directly towards the window where Tidur was standing. Daunte looked at Tidur and saw the girl no longer looked distressed. She actually looked quite shocked.

"I won," Sloan told her, looking up at her. Daunte was also surprised by the way Sloan was looking at her. In the last memory Sloan looked at Tidur with genuine hate. But as a child Sloan looked at her with kindness, and…something more.

"I won," Sloan repeated himself. He was keeping his tone gentle. "Did you see me? I won."

Tidur stared at him wordlessly. Behind Sloan, Tidur's father was advancing on them. "I do not authorize this! Tidur, go to your room now!"

Sloan reached out a hand to her. "Come with me. I'll take care of you, I promise."

"Tidur!"

Tidur blinked, and a couple of tears rolled down her cheeks. After a moment she reached out and accepted his hand.

"Daunte?"

Daunte quickly looked up and let out a short breath. He was back in the sitting room, and he was holding the photograph in his hands. He looked down at the two children in the photograph—Sloan and Tidur—and quickly shoved it back into the drawer.

"Are you all right, Daunte?" Felicity asked behind him.

"I-I'm fine," Daunte said, turning back around.

A moment later Tidur came into the room carrying a tray with a pot of tea and teacups. Daunte quickly looked away, feeling ashamed. "We have camellia tea. Is that all right for everyone?"

"Yes, thank you," Allise said. Esther and Ciana set up the teacups while Tidur sat down ready to serve. After everyone had a cup of tea in their hands Tidur spoke. "So, how can I help you all?"

"We have reason to believe that your family isn't safe," Allise said. Daunte wondered how she had become their spokesperson all of a sudden, but he knew that their casual acquaintance would help matters. "So we're offering the three of you the opportunity to join the Liberation Army?"

"Liberation Army?" Esther exclaimed. She looked at her mother. "Those are terrorists!"

"W-We're not really terrorists," Gunther said defensively.

"Oh? Then who else has blown up building with Rage Runes besides you guys?"

Roen visibly flinched. Gunther leaned forward a bit. "Those stories are completely false, little lady?"

"So who blew up that chapel in the capital two years ago?"

Gunther twitched. " _That_ was not our fault."

"But you—"

"Esther," Tidur interjected. "Why don't Ciana and you go upstairs and play?"

Esther clicked her mouth shut. Without another word she took Ciana by the hand and led her to the door. However when they reached the door she suddenly spoke up. "If we're in danger, then who will protect us?"

" _Ciana_ ," Tidur said. "I will protect you, as I always have."

The girls left the room and Tidur turned her focus to the group. "While I appreciate your concern, I'm going to have to refuse your offer."

"Ms. Tidur, we're afraid of the Sheikh coming after you," Felicity said fearfully. "If you were to join us, we could protect both you and your daughters from him."

"We've gotten along just fine without the assistance of the Liberation Army so far," Tidur said. "I have nothing I can offer your Army. I'm not a warrior, and neither are my daughters. And an Army headquarters is not an appropriate place for my children. The only thing I desire is to give my daughters a stable living environment. That would be impossible if I join you."

"Ms. Tidur," Daunte said suddenly, stepping forward. "You are a capable businesswoman and could help organize the barracks into a new inn. You could use that living space to give Esther and Ciana a safe place to stay. And you wouldn't have to fear your husband coming after you."

"I'm not here because I'm living in fear," Tidur said defensively, her hands stiff in her lap. "I'm officially estranged from my husband and he has expressed no desire to have any association with us. I came here to start a new life with my daughters and to give them stability. I'm sorry I cannot be of any further help to you."

Daunte sighed softly, but he reluctantly nodded. "I understand, ma'am. We'll leave you to your peace. But if you change your mind, or if your lives become in danger, then don't hesitate to seek us out."

Tidur smiled and nodded. "Thank you, Daunte. I'm glad to see a fine young man like yourself with a good head on your shoulders. I wish all of you the best in the paths you have chosen."

"Thank you." Daunte bowed, but his stomach was churning. There was…just so many things that didn't make any sense.

 _The Sheikh saved Tidur when they were both teenagers, younger than_ _ **me**_ _even, from a marriage she didn't want. But then he turned around and spent who knows how long physically and verbally abusing her? Why would he go to such lengths to save her from an arranged marriage if he was going to work so hard to make her miserable?_

" _She still has a pleasant air around her, but she seemed…content before. Fulfilled, even. Now she seems different. Much sadder."_

Allise had said that, which implied that Tidur _had_ been happy at some point during her marriage to Sloan. But something changed…and Sloan revealed himself to be the monster he was. What caused the change?

 _I don't understand at all._

* * *

"We should probably leave soon before someone recognizes us," Roen said.

"One moment," Allise said. She pointed to a trade post. "I want to see what changes there are on the market."

"You've always had a knack for this," Jantu said as they approached the trading post.

"Well, it can quick and easy money if done correctly," Allise said. She smiled at the tradesman. "Can you tell me about the rumors on the market, mister…?"

"Kin," the tradesman said. He was a lean, bronze-skinned man in his late twenties with a black goatee and his hair worn long in a ponytail to his shoulders. "My name is Kin. And unfortunately the news isn't good."

"How so?"

"The price of rice has skyrocketed," Kin said grimly. "So now the demand for rice has dropped. As you all already know, rice is an integral part of the Nagarean diet, and with the higher prices it's simply not getting out there."

"What is the current price of rice now?" Allise asked.

"3,000 bits a bag," Kin said apologetically. "It's very upsetting, ma'am. If we can somehow get the price of rice to decrease, then the demand for it will increase again as well."

Allise nodded her understanding. "Good luck, sir."

"Thank you, ma'am."

"Aren't you going to buy rice?" Gunther asked her when they walked away. "I-I mean, _that_ would help bring the prices back down wouldn't it?"

"He only had one bag to sell so it wouldn't have made a difference," Allise told him. "We'll need to buy rice elsewhere in order to balance the demand."

 _Oh, so that's how it works? We'll just need to buy rice and then sell it as fast as possible to get the demand back in equilibrium?_ Daunte shook his head. _This is just so confusing._

"I think we've done all we can here," Gunther said. "We've ensured that that family is safe, though the Sheikh really _is_ a fool for throwing that woman away! But where should we go to next?"

"How about Baltas?" Daunte asked.

Gunther's face lit up. "Yes, yes! There are _lots_ of beautiful women in Baltas!"

"Oh, brother," Allise sighed, rolling her eyes.

"Didn't we rescue the prince from Baltas, though?" Roen asked. "They'll recognize us, won't they?"

Gunther snorted obnoxiously. "You'd be surprised how _little_ people pay attention to what goes on around them."

* * *

A day and a half later they were back in Baltas, and to Daunte's utter shock they breezed through the security check at the entrance to town. Security didn't seem any tighter in town despite the fact that a kidnapped prince had been successfully rescued from town.

 _Maybe no one really does pay attention. But why am I surprised?_

"I know where we can go first," Gunther said, gesturing in the direction of the tavern. "That lovely dancer! Let's go and recruit her!"

"She _was_ pretty quick on her feet," Felicity mused, smiling at Daunte. "You had quite a bit of trouble keeping up with her!"

"Anyone would," Daunte grumbled.

They entered the tavern, and saw that it was still as lively as it'd been the last time they were there. And based upon how many intoxicated individuals Daunte saw, he knew that the loophole abuse of the alcohol consumption law was in full effect.

"Who exactly are we looking for?" Jantu asked as they neared the stage.

"Hopefully she'll be out any minute," Gunther said gleefully. And no sooner did he saw this that the familiar guitar music filled the air and the patrons cheered. Desiree came out onstage with her usual routine of being covered by a cloak before whipping it off to dance.

 _The way she moves make me wonder if she fights in the same sort of style._ Daunte wondered. Desiree kicked her leg up high before sliding into a full split on the stage.

"I must say she has impressive agility and stamina," Jantu mused.

"I'm mesmerized by her legs," Gunther sighed.

"I'm not surprised," Allise remarked with little humor.

Desiree gracefully climbed to her feet before she pointed. "You!"

Daunte stiffened as that graceful finger once again pointed to him. "Aw, why you again?!" Gunther complained loudly.

Daunte found himself pushed onto the stage, and Desiree was smiling at him. "Want to show me your new moves?"

"What?" Daunte asked.

Desiree didn't respond except to dance around him. Daunte once again tried to keep up with her, but Jantu had a point. Her speed and stamina were incredible, and while Daunte quickly tired she still kept going. The patrons were still cheering, but they were also still heckling him. _Why did she choose me again?!_

Mercifully the dancing ended and the crowd cheered. Desiree turned to him and cupped his cheek. "Good effort. Come back though when you become quicker on your feet." She kissed him on the cheek and skipped offstage.

 _S-She said that before didn't she?_ Daunte quickly scrambled offstage before the patrons could start throwing stuff at him.

"Well it looks like you missed that opportunity to get a new recruit Daunte," Allise said apologetically.

"This isn't fair!" Gunther whined. "This is the _second_ time she's chosen you to dance with! Why does she keep choosing you?!"

"I don't know," Daunte said defensively.

"Let me give you some advice," Jantu said, pulling him aside. "She has advanced stamina and agility skills. I can tell with how she moved her body. If you want to keep up with her, I would recommend building your agility and stamina skills."

"Agility and stamina skills?" Daunte asked.

"We all have strengths and weaknesses in combat and magic," Jantu told him. "We as people have a natural skill set we can develop. With enough practice it will greatly improve your skills overall."

"I don't understand," Daunte said.

"Well, I can only tell you combat-related information because I'm a combat trainer. If you want some pointers I can teach you how to develop your skills. However since you have a True Rune you shouldn't just focus on combat skills. Once you find a magic trainer they can train you in such."

"S-So you're saying you can _train_ me to keep up with Desiree?"

"If she moves as quickly in combat as she does in her dancing, I think she would be a great ally," Jantu said. "As a combat trainer I would rate her stamina and agility skills grade 'B'. From what I've seen of your skills Daunte, I would say that your stamina has a grade of 'E' and your agility has a grade of 'D'. If you were to develop both of these skills to be on the same level as hers, then you would definitely be able to keep up with her."

"Can you raise these skills to grade 'B' right now?"

Jantu shook his head. "In order for me to raise your grade, you need to earn 'points' in combat. As of right now you would only have enough points to raise each of them to 'C'. Just take your time and develop _all_ of your skills and you'll become stronger."

"All right."

"Guys," Felicity said as she hurried over to them. "Gunther wants to stop by that one white house with that sultry woman to see if she'll join us."

"That sounds like Gunther," Jantu said dryly.

"But why?" Daunte asked. "Does the woman have a special skill she can contribute to the Army?"

Felicity shrugged. "Ask Gunther, this is _his_ idea."

They left the tavern and turned down towards the street where they found the white house. Daunte saw the usual soldiers around them and felt a little self-conscious. But it was a relief to see that they weren't giving them a second glance.

They traveled down the same road and quickly spotted the white house. But Daunte immediately noticed something different about it. "Where are the guards?"

"Hey, you're right!" Felicity exclaimed, running forward. Roen followed her. "That female guard and the handsome male guard are gone!"

"Handsome?" Gunther echoed. Felicity grinned at him. "You're not the only one who can admire an attractive person, Gunther."

Daunte looked up at the house as they came to stand in front of it. The balcony doors were closed. After staring at the glass doors for a long moment, Daunte realized something else.

 _The curtains are missing._

"Hey," Roen said. His hands were cupped around his eyes as his face was pressed against the first-story window. "The furniture is all gone."

"Really?" Felicity asked. She peeked into the window as well. "Hey, you're right! The house is completely bare!"

"Maybe this "sultry woman" moved elsewhere?" Allise asked.

"What is this?" the group jumped as a woman approached them. She reminded Daunte of a typical nosy neighbor. "Why are the lot of you loitering here?"

"What happened to the woman who was living here?" Gunther asked, gesturing to the house.

The neighbor huffed, and tugged at the solid veil on her head self-consciously. "It happened just last night. Soldiers came and arrested her."

" _Arrested_ her?" Felicity exclaimed.

"There was so much noise—a lot of shouting and screaming. Her guards tried to defend her but then they were served with her arrest warrant and they were compelled to hand her over. After she was gone they took everything out of the house—all the furniture, her clothes. Even the plants she'd been growing." She shook her head. "I don't know what that woman did, but she didn't really cause any problems around here. Granted she made a lot of us uncomfortable with the way she carried herself, but I never once saw her do anything illegal. But with the sheer number of soldiers that came last night just to arrest her and her alone, whatever she did must have been _very_ bad."

Daunte looked at the others and saw their unease. _Just last night. We arrived here too late._

"We should go then," Gunther said grimly. "I don't think there's anything more this place."

"Where shall we go to next then to find recruits?" Allise asked as they walked away. "Thus far we've only gotten an item shop and a woman who fiddles around with a Sound Rune."

"Wait," Daunte said, turning to them. "Let's go to Tenaga. I'm fairly certain we can get another recruit there!"

"Tenaga?" Gunther said, frowning. "Isn't that risky? You guys _did_ rescue a princess from there!"

"We rescued a prince from here though too," Felicity said. "We can at least try, can't we?"

"Without our horses it will take a significant amount of time to get to Tenaga," Jantu said. "And Lord Bearyl only gave us two weeks."

"Then we might as well hurry," Allise said.

* * *

Within a week they had reached Tenaga. Daunte however was once again on edge from the security, especially given the fact that they'd been assisted in rescuing Princess Kaylani by the mayor and the town's forces. The guards admitted looked at him twice but no one said anything as they were hustled into the town proper.

"—can't believe we had a princess here!"

"The poor mayor—"

"But he was beaten!"

"Thankfully the Cabinet understood, but they were so angry—"

"At least he's okay now though, right?"

Daunte breathed out a sigh of relief at _this_ gossip. _So everybody is okay. Nobody was found out during all this._

"So where are we going?" Gunther asked.

Daunte opened his mouth, but he found he didn't have an answer. He'd felt compelled to come to Tenaga to get recruits, but now that they were there he didn't have any answers. "I—"

"Gusoku, are you really closing?!"

Daunte snapped his head around to look over his shoulder. He recognized Gusoku, Tenaga's armorer, standing in front of his armor shop. But even from his position Daunte could see that the interior of the shop was empty, and Gusoku was holding a sign in his hands as he addressed the townsman speaking to him.

"Yes, it's true," Gusoku sighed sadly. "I can't compete with these new regulations. I'm not making enough money to make the rent on this building."

"B-But you're the only armorer in town! What are we supposed to do?!"

"Oh, don't worry. I'm fairly certain someone else will come along to set up shop. This _is_ a pretty competitive piece of real estate, after all."

"Just take care of yourself, okay?"

"I will."

The townsman walked away, and Gusoku shook his head. He climbed up a ladder to take down the sign indicating his armor shop to hand up a new sign instead. _'Closed for Business'_.

Daunte hurried over to him. "G-Gusoku?"

"Ah, it's you!" Gusoku said, forcing a smile at him as he climbed down the ladder. "If you're looking for armor I'm afraid you're too late. As of this morning I'm not longer a shop owner."

"W-What happened?!" Felicity asked.

"It's the new regulations. Apparently after it was discovered that members of the Falenan Royal family had been held here, and that they were successfully rescued by the Liberation Army, the Theocracy added even _more_ to the Merchant's Pledge! As an incentive for people to join the Theocracy's Army, shopkeepers such as myself are now forced to give a _90%_ discount to any and _all_ members of the Holy Army and government officials!"

"Ninety percent?" Allise asked. She shook her head. "How is anyone expected to make a profit from this?"

"I couldn't," Gusoku said. "I could tell tens pieces of armor and still not recoup the losses of even _one_! I-It's difficult because I've worked so _hard_ to maintain this business, but I simply can't compete with the regulations! I've lost too much money as it is, so…" he sighed again, and tapped the side of the building. "So I'm finished."

"How about joining us?" Daunte asked suddenly.

"Huh?" Gusoku looked at him. "Join you?"

"We're the Liberation Army," Gunther said.

"So we're basically responsible for what you're going through," Allise said, wincing. "But we would gladly give you a job in the Army if you would like."

"You're responsible?" Gusoku asked. "How on earth is the Liberation Army responsible for this? These regulations happened because of what happened with the Falenan Royal family, but we had no business kidnapping them anyways! If the Theocracy hadn't taken them in the first place, then none of this would be happening! No…" he wrung his trembling fists in fury. "If the Theocracy had simply left us business owners alone and stopped _punishing_ us for no reason, then I would still have my livelihood! There is no one to blame but the people at the top!"

"So, you will…" Roen began.

Gusoku heaved out another sighed but he grinned at Daunte. "Consider me at your service, my Lord. I will work my heart out to overthrow this corrupt government so that no other business owner has to go through what I'm going through!"

"Well, welcome aboard," Daunte said, shaking his hand.

"I'll gather whatever I have left over and meet you all at the headquarters!" Gusoku said. He ran around the building and disappeared from sight.

"We now have an armorer," Gunther said, grinning. " _And_ he has a good head on his shoulders for who is _truly_ responsible for everything going on!"

"Hopefully he can set up shop at headquarters and get his trade going again," Felicity said.

"Wait a minute." A townswoman approached them. "You guys look familiar to me."

"No, we don't," Allise told her quickly. They took off running down an alleyway. When they were certain the woman wasn't following them, Allise turned to them. "We need to leave the city before she gets the soldiers."

"Right," Daunte said.

"At least we got Gusoku before we were finally recognized," Roen asked. "But where should we go to now?"

Daunte hesitated before he blurted out, "Agameru."

"We're forbidden to go there," Jantu pointed out, but Daunte noticed that his tone wasn't exactly challenging.

"I know," Daunte said. "But I want to check in on them and make sure they're okay."

"Me too," Felicity admitted.

"Well, what our Lordship doesn't know won't hurt him," Gunther said. "Agameru is to the very north of the northwestern provinces and on the southwest side of the High Peak Mountains. It'll take three or four days to get there."

"We'll be over our two-week limit by going there," Allise pointed out.

"I'll take responsibility for it," Daunte said. "But I would still like to go."

Allise smiled at him. "Then we're decided."

* * *

The journey to Agameru did take three days, but they arrived in the hamlet without incident. Daunte saw that it was a very small town of maybe two hundred people or so. He saw that the gates and the fencing surrounding the town was entirely made of wood, unlike the stone walls they'd seen in other towns. He could heard everyone mobilizing from within the town, and the makeshift guard towers at the entrance were being armed as well.

"Halt!" a fully armed townsman shouted, approaching him. "What is your business here?"

"I-Is Lorik Varra here?" Daunte asked, raising his hands. "We—"

"That's _Lord_ Lorik Varra to you!" the man shouted in Daunte's face. "Now what do you want?! The Liberation Army is no longer welcome here!"

"W-We're not acting as representatives from the Liberation Army," Daunte told him. "We just want to speak to Lorik Varra and see how all of you are doing."

"Well, no thanks to the Liberation Army we are in dire straits. We're trying to prepare for a potential full-scale assault by Sheikh Sloan Faakhir." The man huffed in fury. "If it weren't for the Liberation Army, we wouldn't be in this mess!"

"Can we still speak with Lord Lorik?" Allise asked him. "We just want to check in on him."

The man was breathing heavily and glaring. Finally he waved to them. "Fine, come on. But don't waste any more of our time!"

Inside Agameru, everyone was getting fitted into armor and trying out weapons. From the elderly to small children. It made Daunte very uncomfortable to see this going on. _The Sheikh's Army drove the Liberation Army out of his Garrison. How are these people supposed to stand a chance against him?_

They were not allowed to speak to anyone or to visit any shops. They were taken directly to Lorik Varra's house in the center of town. The man himself was also being fitted into armor and was testing the weight of a sword in his hand. Even Daunte could see however that he was holding the sword incorrectly.

"Can I help you?" Lorik asked curtly. Tala repositioned the sword in his hand so that he _was_ holding it properly. "My hands are quite full at the moment so I don't have much time to talk."

"How are you doing?" Gunther asked him.

"How else? We've received word that Sloan Faakhir is preparing to mobilize on us. As payback for betraying the Theocracy and taking Zinnia." Lorik sheathed the sword. "I must do everything I can to protect my people."

"We can speak with Lord Bearyl about this," Allise said. "If you're accepted back into the Liberation Army, then—"

"I have absolutely no intention of offering my services to that man again," Lorik said harshly, glaring at them. "I pledged myself to his cause and for what? To have my people senselessly murdered and be the butt of everybody's jokes just because I'm not a warrior? No thank you."

"Forget your pride for one second!" Allise snapped, startling Daunte. "When the Sheikh comes here, everybody will surely die! More of your people will die! We can ensure that will not happen!"

"Really?" Lorik said, his tone unconvinced. "You can swear that Bearyl Lutis will rise to the occasion and defend us? Forgive me if I don't believe you."

Daunte felt that Lorik was being stubborn, however…however he had a sinking feeling that there was a point to Lorik's apprehension. Would Bearyl Lutis simply welcome him back and help him defend his hamlet? Daunte himself wasn't sure.

"Now if you'll excuse me, we must keep preparing," Lorik said. He gestured to Tala, and the young woman moved behind him to fix the armor he wore. "We don't know when Sloan Faakhir will bring his campaign here, but we know it's coming."

Daunte felt he had a sudden choice to agree with him or to offer him help. After a moment he decided. "C-Can we do anything to help?"

Lorik looked at him. "Excuse me?"

"I-Is there anything _we_ can do to help?" Daunte asked him. "If the Sheikh is coming, I will gladly help you defend Agameru from him."

"No offense, but what can one teenager offer to me to help my town?"

"I-I have a True Rune," Daunte reminded, pulling back his glove to show him the symbol.

"…I remember," Lorik said at length. "But you only know a single healing spell, correct? You don't have the power to repel an entire army. Thank you for the offer, but I must refuse."

"B-But I can't just leave you guys like this!" Daunte demanded.

"Daunte," Gunther said softly, taking him by his arm. He looked at Lorik. "We understand, my Lord. However we _will_ tell Lord Bearyl about the siege that is coming for you and we will see about having him send aid to you."

"I won't hold my breath," Lorik said, folding his arms over his chest.

"Thank you for seeing us," Allise said. They all bowed and turned to leave.

"Your name is Daunte, correct?" Lorik suddenly called out to them.

Daunte paused and turned to face him. "Yes, my Lord."

"Thank you for your consideration," Lorik told him. "If Bearyl Lutis even had a _fraction_ of your integrity, then this war would've already been long over."

Daunte gaped at him for a long moment. "T-Thank you, my Lord."

"You're welcome. Tala." Lorik turned to his bodyguard. "Tell Zander to run another drill with the younger ones."

"Yes, my Lord."

There was nothing more for them to do in Agameru, and they were escorted directly to the gates. Daunte however noticed that they encountered far less hostility from the people of the hamlet than they had before. "Thank you," the man told Daunte.

"Y-You're welcome," Daunte stammered, but he felt guilty for accepting the thanks when they weren't doing anything to help.

Outside of Agameru, the group looked amongst themselves. "Lord Bearyl must know about this," Allise said. "But in telling him he will find out we disobeyed direct orders to not come here."

"I will tell him," Daunte said. "No matter what he's said, he needs to know Lord Lorik needs help!"

"That he does," Gunther said grimly, looking at the outer walls of the hamlet.

"And once again you arise to the occasion to help people."

Everyone snapped to attention at this familiar voice. Daunte turned to see Oboro leaning against the outer walls. The older man was smiling at them, but the smile seemed…strange.

"There you are!" Felicity exclaimed. "We were wondering where you had gone off to, Oboro! You just disappeared after the Falenans were rescued!"

Oboro shrugged. "I disappeared because Lord Bearyl Lutis tried to extract information from me as though I owed him something. When I told him that _you_ —" he gestured to Daunte. "—had hired me and so I had to answer to you, he ejected me from the premises."

"Yeah, he has a _knack_ for doing that," Roen muttered.

"So I've spent the last month or so doing what I do best," Oboro continued, approaching them. "But when I'd heard that Sheikh Sloan Faakhir was readying his battalions to assault this town, I came as quickly as I could to warn them. And now we meet again, and I see that you were similarly unsuccessful in trying to provide further aid to his Lordship."

"His posturing will get everyone killed!" Allise fumed softly.

"He is posturing," Oboro agreed. "But he is also being cautious. He did lose several people trying to maintain a stronghold in Zinnia. I can see his hesitation in accepting help, but…yes. This town doesn't stand a chance against the upcoming invasion."

"We will _try_ to help them," Daunte insisted. "I will gladly tell my Lord that I disobeyed his orders and came here, if it means that he will send aid!"

Oboro looked at him for a long moment. Daunte stared back at him in confusion. Finally Oboro spoke. "You really do have a good head on your shoulders. Despite everything that has happened to you and what you have gone through, you're still looking out for others. It's very admirable."

"W-Would you consider joining us?" Daunte blurted out. He didn't know where the question came from. "I-I know I still owe you payment for your assistance with helping us find the Falenan Royals—"

"I would be happy to join you," Oboro told him.

Daunte blinked. "R-Really?"

"It would be an honor to lend my services to your cause. I happen to have a lot at stake myself in your victory."

"Really?" Gunther asked. "How come?"

"I can't tell you that," Oboro told him.

"Why not?!"

"T-Thank you," Daunte said, shaking his hand. "We would definitely appreciate your services."

"What exactly _are_ your services?" Roen asked warily.

"I'm a detective," Oboro told him cheerfully. "I will investigate anyone you ask, and if you have a mind to find some more recruits, I can find you leads about where you can find these recruits."

"That would certainly save us from just wandering around again," Jantu agreed.

"Then I shall accompany your group back to your headquarters. An old man such as myself shouldn't travel alone, after all."

"B-But you've been traveling alone this whole time!" Roen pointed out.

Daunte nodded and looked at the others. "Then, let's return to headquarters."

* * *

The group had left for a two-week mission to recruit as many people as possible. They returned to headquarters however a full-week late and with only _four_ recruits. As they reached the front of the castle, Daunte saw the figure standing at the top of the stairs and he suddenly filled with dread.

"So," Bearyl Lutis called down to them. "The six of you have been gone for three weeks. Where are the warriors I told you to recruit?"

"M-My Lord," Gunther said, stepping forward. "We got some people—"

"I've only have three people come to my castle," Bearyl boomed down to them. Daunte shrank a little, suddenly feeling self-conscious. The courtyard had quickly become silent and everyone was staring at them. "Two shopkeepers, and a girl who does nothing but change people's voices. And I see you brought back that individual I had escorted off the premises a month ago."

"Well, Lord Daunte here has hired me," Oboro answered him pleasantly.

" _Lord_?!" Bearyl snapped. He glared at Daunte. "Since when do _you_ have a Lordship?!"

"My Lord," Daunte said, climbing up the steps. "I have important information—"

"All of you have wasted my time and resources gathering freeloaders who contribute _nothing_ to my armed forces!" Bearyl shouted. "Gunther, Allise! I expected better of you both!"

"My Lord," Allise said apologetically, bowing.

"I'm sorry," Gunther said insincerely, also bowing.

"Lord Bearyl," Daunte snapped. "We have an emergency! Agameru is preparing for a siege by Sloan Faakhir's for—"

"So you flagrantly disobeyed my direct orders?!" Bearyl snapped. He gestured angrily. "Seize his weapon and take him directly to his room. You are suspended until further notice."

"Wait a minute!" Felicity cried out, hurrying up the steps. "Lord Bearyl, Daunte was just—"

"So you also went to Agameru?!" Bearyl snapped at her.

"I—"

"No," Daunte interrupted. "It was just me. I snuck off from the rest of the group."

"I don't know why I put up with you," Bearyl fumed as a soldier took Daunte's tekko. "Gunther and Allise, I need a word with you both about how and _why_ neither of you kept a better eye on your subordinate."

"Lord Bearyl!" Daunte snapped as two soldiers seized his arms. "Lord Lorik Varra is in trouble! Agameru is going to be attacked by the Sheikh's forces! We have to—"

"I'm not interested in listening to the plight of traitors." Bearyl turned around started climbing back up the stairs. "Gunther, Allise! _Now_!"

Gunther and Allise raced up the stairs past Daunte, though Gunther spared Daunte a sympathetic look. Bearyl disappeared into the castle, and to Daunte's surprise the soldiers immediately let go of his arms. "I'm sorry," one said. "But we have to escort you to your room."

"If it were up to us, you wouldn't be punished," the second one said. "As far as I'm concerned you didn't do anything wrong, but…"

Daunte nodded. "I understand." He said nothing to Roen or Felicity or Jantu or Oboro as they headed into the castle. He was steered towards the stairs leading down into his room, but the sudden excited chatter from upstairs gave him pause.

"—an armorer! We finally have a _real_ armorer who can get us the best armor! And an item merchant! We can finally get all the supplies we need!"

Daunte's jaw dropped incredulously and he glared upstairs. _Are you kidding me? He yells at me for not getting him warriors and humiliates_ _ **all**_ _of us over an apparent failure, but yet he's HAPPY he has these recruits?! I don't understand him! If he's satisfied with our work then why doesn't he show ANY appreciation for it?!_

"Come," one of the soldiers said softly, waving to him. Daunte saw from the man's grim expression that he had also heard what Bearyl had been saying. Daunte bit down hard on his bottom lip as he marched towards the stairs.

 _What's the point of even trying if my efforts are not going to be appreciated?_

* * *

Arin was shocked that Daunte was suspended again, but Daunte was too angry to talk about it. His anger also gave him restless sleep and he spent most of the night glaring out the window into the darkness outside.

The following morning Arin still wanted answers about why Daunte was suspended, and though Daunte was lethargic from staying up all night he finally told Arin what happened.

"W-Wait, _what_?!" Arin snapped. "You're being punished for _that_?!"

Daunte nodded. "And he didn't appreciate the recruits I sent back here."

"B-But when the armorer arrived, Lord Bearyl was _ecstatic_! Why did he yell at you if he was happy about Mr. Gusoku?!"

"I honestly don't know," Daunte sighed, throwing up his hands.

There was a quick knock at their door. "Daunte, can we come in?"

"I can't, Felicity, I'm suspended," Daunte answered.

The doorknob rattled and the door surprisingly swung open to reveal Roen and Felicity. "O-Oh, they didn't lock you in!"

"They didn't?" Daunte asked with genuine confusion.

"I'm so angry," Felicity fumed as Roen closed the door behind them. "Who does Lord Bearyl think he is to treat us in such a way?! We scoured half the countryside finding him recruits, and he rewards us with scorn! If I wanted to be worked to the bone for a thankless task, I would've stayed in the Dark Chasm!"

"Felicity, we can't compare our work here to the Dark Chasm!" Daunte said defensively. "They're completely different!"

"I've told you guys this before, but it was a mistake to join the Liberation Army," Roen told them softly. "We're under the command of a man who is going to run this Army into the ground and get everybody killed! We need to get out of here while we still can!"

"And go _where_ , Roen?!" Felicity demanded sharply. "We're fugitives! We have no homes to go home to, and no families to seek out! We have _nothing_! At least by staying here we don't have to keep looking over our shoulders!"

"But if we stay here, then that man is going to end up getting us killed," Roen retorted. "And _I_ for one do not want to lose my life in the name of Bearyl Lutis!"

"Guys, stop it!" Daunte snapped, standing up. "We're here and we need to make the most of it! Lord Bearyl has made questionable decisions, yes, but there are plenty of people here who believe in his cause and are willing to die to bring the necessary change to this country! Now unless anyone has any better options, we have no choice but to tough it out here and try to survive!"

"Right," Felicity said, nodding.

"…Right," Roen said, nodding. "I'm just so angry with how we've been treated! Bearyl Lutis is no leader at all! I honestly believe he has no idea what he's doing!"

"But he is our leader and we must follow him," Daunte said. "Because all of us know what the alternative could be."

"…Yeah."

They left not long after that. Daunte waited a few moments until after they were gone and tested the doorknob. It turned easily in his grasp and the door opened.

 _T-They really didn't lock me in here? Does…Does this mean that they really don't agree with my punishment?_

"Brother?"

Daunte turned to look at Arin, who watched him fearfully. "Brother, what are we going to do?"

Daunte forced a smile at him and walked over to sit beside him on the bed. "Everything is going to be all right, Arin. Just you wait."

"W-Will Lord Bearyl really get us all killed?" the child asked him.

"No," Daunte said, but even he wasn't certain of it.

* * *

Bearyl rubbed both hands over his face and lowered them to his sides. "What did you say?"

"I was just notified that sixty soldiers are missing, my Lord," Gunther said tensely, planting his hands on his hips. "They were confirmed as having been here last night, but as of this morning they're no longer here."

"Where is their commanding officer?" Bearyl snapped. "Summon him here now!"

"I can't do that," Gunther said. "Their commanding officer is gone too."

"Was there any witnesses?" Allise asked. "Does anyone know why roughly two-thirds of one unit are gone?"

"Their comrades have their own ideas," Gunther said, shrugging. "They said it was _desertion_."

"Desertion?" Bearyl echoed. " _Desertion_?!" he punched the war table in frustration. "They ran away like cowards and deserted us?! How dare they make a pledge to me if they're not going to uphold it?!"

"I imagine they were concerned, my Lord," Gunther said.

"About what?!"

"Well why all due respect, you haven't exactly inspired confidence—"

" _Excuse_ me?!" Bearyl hollered. He advanced upon Gunther. "I am the leader of the Liberation Army! I am a symbol of hope for what this nation can truly become! These soldiers owe me _everything_! This Army would exist without me!"

"But Phoebe Amirmoez created the Liberation Ar—"

Bearyl struck him across the face. "Don't you _ever_ marginalize the sacrifices I've made for this Army! For _my_ Army!"

"I've done _nothing_ but defend you!" Gunther shot back. "I've worked my ass off to make this Army a success because I believe in you and I believe in our cause! If I didn't have _any_ faith in you, I wouldn't be standing here!"

"You—"

" _Enough_ ," Caesar cut in sharply. "Gunther, you're out of line. This open defiance of our leader shows insubordination. We're in this together, and if we want to win this war we can't be at each other's throats!"

Gunther slowly relaxed, and nursed his cheek. "I'm sorry, my Lord," he said softly.

Bearyl let out a sharp breath. "Okay." He turned back around to look at the map on the table.

"But this is a real concern," Caesar said. "We have sixty soldiers that are missing, and if others believe that they deserted, that may inspire mass desertion. We need to be an inspiration and united force for our soldiers in order to ensure that this doesn't happen! Gunther, Allise, and Varnaz. Go down and meet with our forces but do not be totalitarian with them. If they have grievances, listen to them and bring them back to us. Most of all show your faith in our leader because if we don't demonstrate faith, then how can we inspire such from our troops?"

"Right," Gunther said, nodding.

"I'm very good at sweet-talking," Allise said.

"I will ensure my soldiers have faith in our leader," Varnaz said.

Caesar nodded, and waited until all three of them left. He silently counted to ten before turning to Bearyl. "My Lord—"

"Save it, Caesar," Bearyl interrupted him, still looking at the map. "You've already made your grievances known to me."

"I've downplayed this, but I believe this was desertion," Caesar countered. "We cannot stand to lose allies the way we are! At this rate we won't have any Army left to make a stand against the Theocracy! My Lord, I implore you to heed my advice and _humble_ yourself! I promise you it won't be a sign of weakness! We cannot lose any more allies!"

Bearyl was silent for a long time. Caesar's breathing was heavy as he waited tensely for Bearyl's answer.

Finally, Bearyl turned to face him. "Then it's time to call Falena in one their favor."

* * *

 _Investigations_

 _Secret #1_

 **Name:** Jantu

 **Age:** 37

 **From:** Two River, Dunan Republic

 **Position:** combat trainer for the Liberation Army

 _Secret #2_

Jantu came to Nagarea all the way from the Dunan Republic four years ago out of curiosity. As there are no native Kobolds in Nagarea, Jantu caused quite a stir when he arrived. The reactions varied from fascination to fear, and he wound up in trouble multiple times. But as he's demonstrated himself to being a very capable fighter, he's always been able to get himself out of trouble.

 _Secret #3_

Jantu fought alongside the Kobolds of Two River during the Dunan Unification War. Ever since he was young he's looked up to Lord Ridley of Two River, and has tried to follow his example. The three races that occupy Two River—the Kobolds, humans, and Wingers—have a tumultuous history, but thanks to the efforts of Dunan Army leader, Lord Riou, relations between the three races improved considerably. This is probably why Jantu feels no apprehension or animosity towards the humans that surround him.

 _Secret #4_

Did you know Jantu is a fan of chocolate? I…don't quite understand how this is so, particularly since I had heard that chocolate is a toxin to Kobolds. But Jantu is often seen snacking on chocolate bars imported from Kanakan. His body must have exceptional endurance to it, or his metabolism might process chocolate differently than it would for other Kobolds. I would still recommend that someone speak to him about his chocolate intake though. Toxin or not, that much chocolate is not good for anyone's teeth.


	16. Chapter Two: Part Three

Thanks to everyone who participated in the marriage polls! Here are the results:

 _Who would you like to be Haswar's husband?_

Volga (Suikoden V): 0

Wasil (Suikoden V): 0

Wilhelm (Suikoden V): 0

 **Craig Laden (Suikoden V): 3**

Gavaya (Suikoden V): 1

Haleth (Suikoden V): 0

Kyle (Suikoden V): 0

Cius (Suikoden V): 0

Shinro (Suikoden V): 0

New Character: 0

 _Who would you like to be Lym's husband?_

Camus (Suikoden II): 1

Miklotov (Suikoden II): 0

Toma (Suikoden V): 0

Sheena (Suikoden I, II): 1

Nick (Suikoden V): 0

Yoran (Suikoden V): 1

Kage (Suikoden I, II): 0

Klaus Windamier (Suikoden II): 0

 **Shoon (Suikoden V): 2**

Koyu (Suikoden II): 0

Kahn Marley (Suikoden II): 0

Shu (Suikoden II): 1

Rikimaru (Suikoden II): 0

Morgan (Suikoden I): 0

Jess (Suikoden II): 0

Zaj Quilous (Genso Suikogaiden I and II): 0

Clive (Suikoden I and II): 0

New character: 1

* * *

Part Three

"No, Arin, like this." Jantu stepped forward and adjusted Arin's hands around the hilt of the wooden short sword. "Since you're right-handed, your right hand needs to be higher than your left on the hilt."

"R-Right, I'm sorry," Arin said.

Daunte was leaning on the rail surrounding the arena, watching Jantu give Arin his lesson. It seemed surreal that it wasn't long ago that Arin was bed-ridden and on the verge of death. Now his little brother was up and about and participating in physical activity.

 _It's because we came here that he was able to get better. I'm thankful to the Liberation Army…for this, at least._

It'd been four days since he'd been suspended for disobeying Bearyl's orders and going to Agameru. He was relieved at least that this new round of suspension didn't involve orders for him to be confined to his room. Or at least if there were, then nobody was enforcing it. But it still bothered Daunte that he kept getting suspended at all, especially since he was being suspended for _helping_ people.

 _I just don't understand Bearyl Lutis. He leads an army called the Liberation Army, and yet he doesn't seem to be doing any actual liberating. Well he_ _ **did**_ _liberate Zinnia, but that town didn't seem to want to be liberated anyways. I don't believe anything I've done has been harmful for the Army, yet I keep getting punished!_

"Daunte."

Daunte stood to attention as a uniformed Army soldier approached him. "Lord Bearyl has summoned you."

"O-Okay," Daunte said, though he wondered why Bearyl would summon him. _Is he going to lift my suspension?_ Daunte waved to Arin in the arena. "I'll be right back, Arin! You're doing great!"

"Thanks, Daunte!" Arin called back to him.

Daunte followed the soldier upstairs to the war room. While it would be nice if he was reinstated, Daunte had a sinking feeling that his summons had nothing to do with it. _I hope he doesn't throw Arin and me out for my defiance. I don't know what we would do if that happened._

As they crossed into the main hall and descended the stairs, Daunte caught sight of Liron. The young lady was surrounded by people, and based upon the masculine voice emulating from an elderly woman's mouth, he could tell she was showing off her Sound Rune. _She seems much happier having the sound set. I wonder though, since that box had the number 2 on it, if there's other sound sets out there she can play with?_

"I've brought Daunte," the soldier called out as they entered the war room.

"Thank you, that will be all," Bearyl answered him. The soldier saluted him and departed. Bearyl was leaning with his back against the war table. Varnaz was contemplating the figurines on the map, and Gunther was leaning against one wall and waved to Daunte.

Caesar was also present, but…the strategist was frowning with disapproval. The expression only made Daunte more nervous. _This…This must be bad._

"I have an announcement," Bearyl said, and Daunte noticed for the first time that the Liberation Army leader looked excited. "I sent correspondence to Falena three days ago asking for their assistance in our cause. Seeing as how they have me to thank for rescuing the Royal Family, I felt it was an opportune time to call them in on the favor they owe us."

Daunte kept his face expressionless, though his stomach was churning on the inside. _Call them in on the favor they owe us? Did I miss something? Did Lord Bearyl somehow make favors with the Falenan Royal Family? Because as far as I'm concerned, he wasn't present when the Commander of the Queen's Knight took his family home! He was too busy trying to conquer a Garrison he had no business conquering!_

"This morning we received their reply," Bearyl continued excitedly. "Falena's Parliament is going to be hosting an official assembly where they will discuss our potential alliance. They've invited me to the capital, Sol-Falena, to speak to the Parliament and to the Queen about forging an alliance!"

"T-That's incredible!" Daunte gasped. He was beyond excited by this news. _Is Falena going to enter into an alliance with us? Maybe Surya will join us as well!_

"However we obviously can't make a true diplomatic showing in Falena because of the fact that we're a rebel army," Bearyl continued. "It would draw far too much attention to us. So what we must do is sneak out of Nagarea and sail up the coastline until we reach the inland of Nagarea. Because of this I must travel in a small group. So in lieu of bringing soldiers, I'm only going to bring four people with me."

"I see," Daunte said, nodding.

"After careful deliberations I've selected the four people who will go with me; Caesar, Varnaz, Gunther…and you."

"Me?" Daunte exclaimed, pointing to himself.

"Yes, you," Bearyl confirmed. "Is that a problem?"

"N-No, not at all!" Daunte shook his head. "But I'm suspended—"

"I'm returning your weapon to you, Daunte." Bearyl gestured to the table and Daunte saw for the first time his tekko sitting there. "I feel you have worked very hard for the sake of my Army, and despite your questionable choices I can't deny you have produced results for me. I appreciate the hard work you've done, Daunte, and so I would like to honor you with being part of my personal guard for this important assembly."

Daunte saw that both Varnaz _and_ Caesar looked displeased, but Daunte nodded. "I'd be happy to come along on this mission."

"I don't anticipate running into hostility while in Falena, but I would like you to still be on your guard. Because of the urgency of this mission we're going to be leaving very shortly, so go pack whatever you believe you'll need for this mission and meet us out front."

"R-Right!" Daunte bowed and hurried forward to take his tekko before running out of the war room. It was hard to believe that despite the trouble he kept getting into, that Bearyl trusted him enough to bring him along on a mission with a foreign country.

 _I can't believe it. I'm going to Falena!_

* * *

"You two get ready as well," Bearyl told Varnaz and Gunther I want to be on route towards the Northern Wharf in twenty minutes."

"Yes, sir." Both men saluted and took their leave.

Caesar folded his arms over his chest and waited until the doors to the war room closed before he spoke. "My Lord, if I may—"

"You're going to speak your mind anyways, Caesar, so you might as well spit it out now." Bearyl opened a satchel and began shoving scrolls into it.

"Why exactly are we bringing Daunte along with us?" Caesar asked him. "I don't deny the work he's done for us, but compared to our other soldiers he's still technically a new recruit."

"What about it?"

"Well, many of our soldiers might consider this to be special treatment for Daunte. After all, you've already publicly punished him _twice_. Now he's been given the honor of being part of your personal guard on this _highly_ important mission? You've chosen him over many of our allies who outrank him!"

"What exactly are you trying to say, Caesar?"

"Sir." Caesar stepped closer to Bearyl. "Daunte was instrumental in the rescue of the Falenan royals. Are you bringing him with us to help solidify a potential alliance?"

"How little faith you have in my leadership skills, Caesar." Bearyl closed the satchel, but his tone was surprisingly playful. "I'm not doing anything of the sort with Daunte. It had occurred to me just how hard that boy works—harder than most of the men twice his age here—and how little I've commended him for such hard work. I wanted to reward him with a mini-vacation, and what better way to have a vacation than to bring him to Sol-Falena?"

"My Lord," Caesar said hotly. "If you're hiding anything from me—"

"Caesar, I'm _spoiling_ the kid," Bearyl said impatiently. "He's perfectly free to wander around Sol-Falena if he wishes while we have the assembly! I don't need him to secure my alliance, I'm perfectly capable of using my own power to do it! Is it too much to ask for to have a little faith in me?"

"I have faith in you. I've _always_ had faith in you. But you've hidden things from me before, most recently your plan to seize Sloan Faakhir's Garrison. I'm your strategist, and I'm here to make sure your Army wins this war. But it'll be very difficult for us to be victorious if you don't share your plans with me!"

"Caesar." Bearyl took a deep breath and let it out sharply. "Just trust me, okay? I know what I'm doing. Forging this alliance will be difficult enough as it is, but we won't get anywhere if we don't show Falena that we're fully united."

"I understand." Caesar bowed slightly, even as his teeth gritted. _Damn it all! What is he trying to do? Is he truly bringing Daunte with us to "spoil" him? Or he going to use Daunte to try and shame Falena into an alliance?_

* * *

"You're going to Falena?!" Felicity exclaimed. "That's incredible! When?!"

"Very shortly," Daunte said. He counted out some antidotes, medicinal herbs, and one escape scroll and shoved them into a bag. "I just found out about it and we're leaving in twenty minutes."

"I'm so jealous," Roen said, leaning against the wall. "I wish I could go along with you."

"I don't know why Lord Bearyl chose me for his escort for the assembly, but I _am_ a little excited about it."

"You should be _more_ than a little excited," Felicity said. "You're going to Falena! Our only neighboring country, but a country we've had no diplomatic ties to in over a hundred years! Plus you'll be in the capital! You'll definitely be able to see Surya again!"

"Daunte, how does this look?" Arin asked, holding up a piece of paper. There was a small paragraph written in shaky handwriting, but Arin was smiling proudly. "I didn't get to thank Prince Surya for saving me, so I hope he likes this letter!"

"Hey, that's a good idea," Roen said. He hurried over to the desk and pulled out a clean piece of paper. "I want to write Surya a letter too!"

"Me too," Felicity said, also hurrying over. The pair began to quickly scribble on their own pieces of paper a quick message for Surya.

Daunte read Arin's letter carefully. The boy's literacy was improving every day, but he was advancing quicker with his handwriting than with reading. Arin could copy down the words he saw, but he still didn't quite grasp the meaning of the words in his mind. But Daunte smiled at his little brother. "This is perfect. I'm sure Surya will be very happy to receive this letter."

"Thanks, Brother!" Arin stood up and suddenly looked shy. "Daunte…would you mind getting me a souvenir in Sol-Falena? E-Even if it's some little trinket?"

Daunte patted his belt and smiled when he felt the weight of his bag of bits. Last he checked he had 1,500 bits. "Sure I will. Did you have anything in particular in mind?"

Arin shook his head. "I'll be happy with whatever you bring back for me!"

"Here," Roen said, folding up his letter. "Do we have any envelops?"

"I think so." Daunte dug around in the desk drawer. He didn't ask what Roen had written for Surya because he didn't want to invade his friend's privacy. He found a few letters and handed them to Roen and Felicity before folding up Arin's letter to put in its own envelope. "Is there anything else you guys need before I go?"

"Just a moment," Felicity said, writing as fast as she could. "I'm almost…there!" she didn't bother proofreading the letter and quickly folded it. "Please try and get our letters to Surya, Daunte! Hopefully he'll be in Sol-Falena when you arrive!"

"After he got kidnapped, I can't imagine the Queen of Falena sending him out of the city for a while," Roen said.

"Just be careful, Brother," Arin said, giving him a hug. "I know you'll work hard to get this alliance with Falena!"

"I don't know about that," Daunte said. "Lord Bearyl said he was just bringing me along because he felt bad about not appreciating my hard work. He'll probably just leave me at the inn or something while they go to the assembly."

"So this is a reward for you?" Roen asked suspiciously. "How come? Sure you're working hard Daunte, but so is everybody else."

"It's probably because Lord Bearyl keeps suspending Daunte for idiotic reasons," Felicity said, smiling. "Well then have fun in Sol-Falena, Daunte."

"I will."

* * *

"—rotten shame."

The hairs on the back of Daunte's neck stood up on end and he looked over his shoulder. A group of soldiers were standing together, and immediately snapped to attention the minute Daunte looked at them. Daunte slowly turned around and started to walk away, and the whispers began again immediately.

"Why does he get to go to Falena? It's not fair!"

Daunte knew it was inevitable. He _was_ still technically a new recruit to the Army and he kept getting into trouble. Yet Bearyl had selected him for this highly important mission. People were bound to be jealous and angry with him.

 _I'll just have to work hard to make this mission a success._

He walked to his destination, which was a cubbyhole room right beside Gizli's appraisal shop. He remember the strange urn he'd found and how he'd wanted to appraise it, but he also remembered that the same urn was in Ichirou's vault. There would be another opportunity to have it appraised.

"Ah, Lord Daunte." Oboro beamed at him as he entered. Oboro was sitting at a desk, and looking at a document with a magnifying glass. "What can I help you with today? Were you pleased with your report on Jantu?"

"Yes, of course," Daunte said, sitting across from him. "It felt strange though to launch an investigation on Jantu. I felt like I was invading his privacy."

"Oh, I wouldn't worry about it. A lot of the information I gave to you was in fact information that Jantu himself had given to me."

"A-All right."

"So." Oboro set down the magnifying glass. "What would you to use my services for? I can investigate another of your companions, or I can look into rumors of potential recruits for the Army."

Remembering the scolding he'd gotten from Bearyl over not finding warriors during his recruitment mission, Daunte sat up straighter. "Yes, I would like you to look into these rumors. How much will that be?"

"Well, you're already aware I charge 100 bits per secret for my investigations. My rumor hunts are a bit pricier however, at 300 bits per person."

"300 bits?" Daunte pulled out his bag of coins and counted out 300 bits on the desk. It meant less money to spend on a souvenir for Arin, but this investigation was also very important. "All right, Oboro, I'd like you to locate a potential recruit for me."

"Excellent," Oboro said, scooping the coins into his palm. "By the time you all come back from Falena, I'll have the information you need."

"Y-You came from Falena, correct?" Daunte asked him. "Would you like me to pass along any letters to your family while I'm there?"

"You will most likely _not_ see my family in Falena, as you'll probably be taken straight to Sol-Falena, and at the moment they're nowhere near the capital. But I appreciate the offer, Lord Daunte."

"All right. Good luck with the recruitment quest."

"Thank you. Good luck with Falena."

Daunte left Oboro's makeshift office and headed upstairs. He met the same level of derision amongst the soldiers and civilians in the main hall, but there was something…different too. Something that disturbed Daunte more than the anger he was receiving.

"Isn't it suspicious that Lord Bearyl chose _you_ for this mission? This is quite possibly the most important mission we've ever faced as an Army, and yet he chose you? You, with whom he keeps complaining is causing trouble?"

"I would be on my guard if I were you. Since you were the one who personally saved all the Falenan royals, Lord Bearyl may use you as a bargaining chip to win the favor of Falena's Queen."

 _That_ was also a possibility that occurred to Daunte, but Bearyl had framed the trip in such a way to make it seem like they were giving Daunte a much-needed vacation. If Bearyl wanted him to speak to Falena's Parliament on behalf of the Liberation Army, why didn't he just come out and say it?

 _I don't want to risk angering Lord Bearyl any further, but Caesar should definitely have answers. I'll ask him about it._

Outside on the steps leading up to the castle he saw Bearyl and the others waiting. Bearyl and Varnaz were buying last-minute supplies from Cairoh, and Gunther was looking at a pair of gauntlets hanging up at Gusoku's shop. Caesar was watching them from the stairs and Daunte hurried down to him. "Caesar?"

"Oh, Daunte." Caesar smiled at him. "Are you ready to go?"

"Can I ask you why Lord Bearyl chose me for this mission?" Daunte asked. "Compared to other people that are here, I'm hardly qualified for this."

"I have asked Lord Bearyl this myself," Caesar said. "And he told me we're taking you with us as a way to repay you for all your hard work."

"Really?" Daunte asked.

"That is what he told me."

"O-Okay." It hardly made sense to Daunte why he was being given sudden special treatment, when Roen and Felicity were working just as hard as he was and they weren't getting this opportunity.

 _Well I'll make the best of it. Although this means I probably won't be able to meet with Surya, then…_

"We're all set," Bearyl said, approaching them. "Are you ready, Daunte?"

"Yes," Daunte replied.

"We'll have some soldiers escorting us to the Northern Wharf, but after we reach the coast we're on our own so be on your guard. Now." Bearyl turned around. "Let's go and secure an alliance with Falena!"

"I look forward to it," Caesar said dryly.

* * *

Night had fallen by the time they reached the Northern Wharf. The Northern Wharf was an expansive stretch of gray beachline. It ran from the western side of High Peak Mountains all the way to the perilous Falenan/Nagarean border. There was only one dock on the coast, but it was heavily guarded by the Theocracy's soldiers. So unsurprisingly they were far down the beachline from the dock.

Three soldiers came with them as their escorts, and Daunte benefitted from their presence since neither Caesar nor Bearyl took part in the fights they had with monsters. Daunte was very familiar with Gunther's fighting style, but he was also impressed with Varnaz's style. Daunte had never seen a morningstar be used as a primary weapon, but Varnaz swung it with exceptional skill. At the completion of one battle however, Daunte noticed something on the back of Varnaz's hand. It was a pale blue symbol of several rippling circles around a water droplet. It reminded Daunte of the Water Rune, but this looked a bit different.

"Is that a Water Rune?" Daunte asked him.

"It's a Flowing Rune," Varnaz told him.

"What does the Flowing Rune do?"

But Varnaz walked away from him without another word. Gunther quickly approached Daunte. "The Flowing Rune is a more advanced version of the Water Rune. It has stronger spells."

"Oh."

"It's going to come in _very_ handy for us," Gunther said. Daunte wanted to ask how but didn't.

When they reached the wharf there was a small fishing boat waiting for them. They were quickly packing the boat when they suddenly heard a voice. "Is this the place?"

Everyone stopped what they were doing and quickly snapped to attention. Thirty meters away he could see a trio of people dragging a very small boat onto the sand from the water. In the moonlight he could see that two of them were human, a man and a woman, and the third looked like a Kobold. But…not _quite_ like a Kobold. Whereas Jantu looked like a greyhound, _this_ Kobold looked like a…cat. Like an anthropomorphic calico cat in human clothes.

"Well, it should be the right place," the man said, rubbing his hands together. He looked to be in his late thirties and he wore his jet-black bangs long on the left side of his face, covering one eye. Even from where Daunte was standing he could see that the man was wearing glasses. His outfit however was startling, as he wore a long trench that was canary yellow in color. His clothes were dark underneath the trench coat and Daunte couldn't see anything more of them. "This coastline is the only part of Nagarea that is available on any global map, so this should definitely be Nagarea."

"I wonder why this country is so isolated?" the woman mused. She looked to be in the same age group as the man and she wore sandy brown hair in a bob cut, but _her_ outfit was even more shocking. Her only top was a green bikini top, and she wore a matching short skirt that was surrounding by a white long skirt that was open down the front. Both arms were covered in pauldrons and gauntlets though, and Daunte saw the hilt of a large sword peeking out from behind one of her shoulders. "Sanji, did your sources say anything about why Nagarea hasn't had any contact with other countries?"

"No, Gertrude, they did not," the man, Sanji, said. He was examining his fingernails. "But we're here for a reason so we must make the most of it."

"It smells different here," the cat humanoid complained softly. They had a high-pitched voice but Daunte saw their clothes and assumed they were male. "Something about this place seems off."

"Bax, we've only just landed! We haven't met anybody yet, so let's not jump to conclusions." Sanji looked inland and nodded. "Shall we go?"

"What should we do about our boat?" Gertrude asked, even as Bax and her followed Sanji inland.

"We don't need it anymore," Sanji said over his shoulder.

Daunte watched them leave, and glanced at the others. "S-Should we try to talk to them?"

"They just entered the country illegally," Bearyl mused, shaking his head. "I'll give them points for taking a risk."

"They should be all right," Caesar said. "Since they have a Nay-Kobold with them, I know they've traveled as far as the Island Nation Federation. If the three of them could travel _that_ far in such a small boat, I'm sure they're prepared for whatever they'll face here in Nagarea."

"Nay-Kobold?" Daunte echoed.

"They're a race of feline Kobolds exclusive to Nay Island," Caesar told him. "They're not as common as canine Kobolds. This is actually my first time seeing a Nay-Kobold—I've only ever seen them in books."

"Should we try to recruit them?" Daunte asked. "T-They said they came here for a reason."

"We don't have time to go and recruit them," Bearyl said. He motioned to the others to start pushing the boat into the water. "We're on a time constraint and need to focus on getting to Falena quickly. If we happen to run into that trio again—which I'm sure we will—then we'll go and recruit them."

Daunte saw his point, but he also felt like they were missing an opportunity. But he said nothing as he helped the others push the fishing boat into the water. The five of them jumped inside and quickly got settled. "Varnaz," Bearyl said.

"Yes, sir," Varnaz said. He raised his left hand—the one with the Flowing Rune—towards the boat's transom. The Rune glowed and its symbol filled the air. A circle of pale blue energy surrounded the transom and Daunte yelped as the boat suddenly jerked and left the shoreline with remarkable speed.

"Just a little something I picked up from the Island Nations and the Southern Continent in general," Caesar said, smiling. "Apparently using a Water Rune on a boat makes boat travel _significantly_ easier. We should reach Falena's coast in just a few hours and we should make it to Sol-Falena by late morning."

"Which will be great help to us," Bearyl said. "The assembly is tomorrow afternoon, after all."

"Tomorrow afternoon?" Daunte asked. "Wait, they were able to call back and assemble their entire Parliament in four days? That's incredible!"

"Actually, we just got lucky," Caesar said. "All of the representatives in Parliament were in Sol-Falena anyways for their quarterly assembly. Our meeting is being fitted in before Parliament goes on recess."

"Oh, okay."

"We should rest up," Bearyl said, settling down into the boat. "We're going to make it just in time for the assembly so there won't be time for us to rest then."

"I'll take the first watch," Gunther said. He whistled as he looked at the ocean's horizon. "This is the first time I've ever left Nagarea, so this is pretty surreal to me."

Daunte turned in the boat to look back at the shoreline. It was gradually becoming smaller and smaller the further they traveled away. It was a surreal feeling for him, too. It was still hard to believe that just a couple months prior he was still a prisoner of the Dark Chasm. Now here he was, physically healthier and en route to a foreign country. His imprisonment seemed almost like a horrible nightmare.

 _Hopefully if we can get an alliance with Falena, that we'll be able to finally liberate the Dark Chasm. Surya is familiar with the Dark Chasm—even if he was only there for a day—so I'm sure the Falenans would be very willing to help us in that regard._

They sailed all night and into the morning, following Nagarea's coastline and up Falena's coastline. Daunte tried to get some sleep but he'd never slept in a boat before (or had even _been_ in one) so he only got a couple hours of sleep.

Dawn broke when Caesar suddenly said, "There."

Daunte looked up. He knew they were definitely within Falena's borders, and he saw the coastline was covered in dark green foliage. There was a sudden break in the foliage however, revealing the mouth of a river. The boat turned towards the river and they were then sailing inland.

Daunte was in awe of his surroundings as they coast up into Falena. _This must be part of the Feitas River Surya mentioned._ He looked down into the water, and admired the crystal clear appearance of it. He almost wanted to dip his hand into the water to drink. He looked up at sky and it was just—everything seemed so _different_ here. He could see what Bax had meant about Nagarea "smelling" different. Falena was different.

 _Surya offered us a home in Sol-Falena. Maybe…maybe I should send Arin here? I'm sure this place would help him recuperate better._

"There should be a lake up ahead, according to our invitation," Bearyl said. Indeed, the river opened up into a large lake. "So now we must keep to the south shores and go east."

Varnaz used his Rune to steer the boat in this direction. The boat however only traveled a couple of meters when they heard a shout. "Stop right there!"

Daunte's head snapped up. He gaped as he caught sight of _three_ heavily armed ships sailing right up to them. They looked like warships, but it felt odd to see them on a river like this.

"Don't worry, leave the talking to me," Bearyl reassured everyone.

"State your business here!" the captain of one of the ships shouted down to them. "We of the Hersheville Naval Base will fully examine your boat for any illegal materials, and you will state your business here!"

"I am Bearyl Lutis of Nagarea's Liberation Army," Bearyl called up to them. He held up the written invitation. "We are here as official guests of Queen Lymsleia to speak before Parliament!"

The soldiers did not answer them right away. The soldiers from the main boat boarded their vessel and took the invitation. The captain read it closely while the other soldiers frisked them and searched their bags. It felt intrusive, but Daunte knew that they had their reasons for treating them with suspicion.

After several minutes of this, the captain smiled and handed the invitation back to Bearyl. "Welcome to Nagarea. We are honored to have you here."

"I am honored to be here," Bearyl greeted in kind.

The captain suddenly looked at Daunte. "You…You are Lord Daunte, correct?"

Daunte flushed, and his gaze darted at Bearyl and Caesar. Bearyl's smile had quickly vanished and Daunte fixed his gaze back on the captain. "I-I'm not a Lord, but my name _is_ Daunte."

"Then we owe you many thanks," the captain said. He bowed to Daunte. "Thank you for saving our Princess and the other in the royal family. We are forever in your debt."

"I-I-I really didn't do much," Daunte said, raising his hands slightly.

"That's right," Bearyl said tartly. "As leader of the Liberation Army _I'm_ responsible for the rescue of the Falenan Royals!"

Gunther shifted slightly, but the captain turned to Bearyl. "O-Of course, my Lord, my apologies. Our boats will act as your personal escort into Sol-Falena. Their Police Force will be ready to receive us."

The soldiers climbed back onto their boat and Bearyl gave Daunte a rather brutal glare before signaling to Varnaz to reactivate his Flowing Rune on the boat. The main boat took the lead up the Feitas, and their boat followed. The remaining two boats took to the rear, flanking their smaller boat as they headed towards Sol-Falena. They turned south briefly before turning east again and then north. Daunte saw a massive fortress in the shape of a star—Caesar said it was a city called Doraat—and then further down the river he saw a larger fortress right in the middle of a lake. Caesar said it was probably Agate Prison.

"From what I heard, during Falena's Civil War Prince Freyjadour used underground tunnels to break into the fortress and rescue his chief strategist, Lucretia Merces."

"Someone you know?" Gunther asked.

"I never met the woman," Caesar said. "But she has _quite_ the reputation in Harmonia. There were rumors of her prowess during the Civil War and how she had a very _uncanny_ ability to predict each and every move made by the Godwin's."

"Maybe we should find her to recruit her for my Army?" Bearyl said.

"Oh, I think she would be an asset to the Army," Caesar said. "But Lady Merces didn't remain in Falena after the war. She most likely returned to the Northern Continent and to Harmonia."

"I see." Bearyl didn't bother hiding his disappointment. Caesar for his part didn't look offended by the sudden favoritism his commander showed to another strategist.

With a Rune to guide them, they reached Sol-Falena by mid-morning. Daunte's jaw dropped as they saw the white bridge that stretched for meters straight from the shoreline all the way into the city proper, situated in the center of the river. Sol-Falena was a _massive_ city, definitely worthy of being Falena's capital and the home of the royal family. He looked at the others and saw them in awe as well. Even Caesar looked impressed by the city as they sailed closer to the dock.

"By _Nagar_!" Gunther suddenly shouted, jumping back. Both Bearyl and Varnaz also stiffened and recoiled, and Daunte quickly looked to see what the matter was. He followed their gazes and his body tensed.

Along the far side of the dock he saw several _Dragon Horses_ lined up.

"Oh, I forgot to warn you all," Caesar said apologetically, standing up. "Sol-Falena has its up Dragon Calvary unit. Please don't be alarmed, they're quite harmless unless you provoke them."

"They're _demonic_!" Bearyl hissed. He was pale in the face. "Their presence brings bad omens!"

"Well, since the Dragon Calvary created a unit in Sol-Falena, the city has never been more secure. Please believe me when I say they won't hurt us. Remember we have to keep up an appearance of strength."

Bearyl took several deep breaths in order to force himself to calm down. "I will speak with you later about this, Caesar," he hissed.

The group managed to compose themselves long enough to keep up appearances as their boat docked. Daunte saw several uniformed officers lined up to greet them. A man in his late fifties wearing a similar uniform dressed in several military stripes stepped forward. He had a receding hairline, but his face had a lot of youthful vigor and he smiled in such a way that Daunte didn't feel so nervous anyone.

"Dignitaries of Nagarea, we welcome you to Sol-Falena," the man greeted them. "I am Cius, Captain of the Police Force of the capital."

"I am Bearyl Lutis, Commander of Nagarea's Liberation Army," Bearyl greeted him as he stepped off the boat. "This is my chief strategist, Caesar Silverberg. My Lieutenant General, Varnaz Behzadi. Lieutenant Gunther. And Daunte." He gestured to each person in kind.

"It's a pleasure to meet all of you," Cius said. He looked up towards the other boats. "Soldiers of Hersheville, thank you for escorting our guests here safely."

"Not at all," the captain of the main boat called down to him. "It was our honor."

Daunte looked up at the other boats, wondering if he should also thank them or remain silent. After a moment he decided. "Thank you for escorting us here safely!"

"Yes, thank you," Caesar also called up to them.

"Anytime!" the captain called back down to them.

"I will act as your personal escort into the city proper and to the Parliament building," Cius said. "However, for security purposes I must ask all of you to hand over your weapons. You will receive them back when you leave the city."

Daunte wanted to ask why, he saw that no one else looked puzzled by this request. So they removed any and all weapons they carried and handed them over to the police officers. "Thank you for your cooperation. Shall we?"

Their boat was closely guarded as they followed Cius away from the docks and up a flight of stairs. They walked down a tunnel until they found themselves on a small bridge leading into the city proper. Once again Daunte was in awe of the city's splendor. There were people everywhere and everyone was talking. As they walked deeper into the city's square and towards the giant bridge, Daunte picked up on several conversations.

"—Nagarean's really here?"

"Are we creating an alliance?"

"It's so amazing the strides Queen Lymsleia has taken during her reign!"

"Well of course, she _is_ supported by the greater Commander of the Queen's Knights we've ever had—"

"Cius, don't work so hard!"

Daunte craned his neck to see if he could spot a shop where he could buy a souvenir from Arin, but they reached another set of stairs leading up to the bridge and couldn't look anymore. From the stairs they turned right and Daunte's jaw dropped as he caught sight of the Sun Palace.

 _Everything about this place seems so clean, and…proper, even. The last time I was in Nagarea's capital I no longer felt safe. Well, Mom and Dad_ _ **were**_ _against the government after all…_

"Here we are," Cius announced, turning them left and down another flight of stairs towards the Parliament building. It was a massive building, and there were several guards on duty. They all saluted as they walked past them and into the building. "Thank you for your punctuality. The assembly is almost ready for all of you, so I will escort you to a waiting room until we are ready for you."

There were many people inside the Parliament building and there was excited chatter all around them, undoubtedly from the upcoming assembly. Cius escorted them all the way to the back of the building towards a door to the northwest. Cius opened the door for them and gestured them inside. "We have some refreshments for you. Feel free to relax in here before the assembly."

"How long before the assembly is set to start, Sir Cius?" Caesar asked him.

"I was told it will start in a half-hour, so take your time and relax before then."

It was a cozy waiting room with several couches. They were the only ones in the waiting room, and as soon as they were left alone Gunther flopped onto one of the couches. "Wow, this place is incredible! Too bad they're watching our every move!"

"It's to be expected," Bearyl said, sitting down. "We _are_ from Nagarea after all, and our two countries don't exactly have the best history."

Daunte was wandering around the room looking at the fancy furniture when Caesar suddenly said, "Daunte, why don't you go and see if you can sight-see around the city? I imagine you'll want to stretch your legs after being in the boat for so long."

Daunte nodded eagerly and smiled. "Y-Yes, thank you."

"Don't be too long, though," Bearyl spoke up. "The assembly starts in a half-hour and we'll need you then."

 _What? But I thought I wasn't taking part in the assembly!_ Daunte looked at Caesar, but he stilled when he saw the look of disbelief the strategist was giving their leader. However it was only momentarily and Caesar quickly recovered himself and forced a smile at Daunte. "We'll see you in a few minutes, Daunte."

"R-Right," Daunte said. He walked over to the door and opened it. Cius was standing outside and immediately greeted him. "Can I help you with something?"

"I-I would like to buy a souvenir in town," Daunte told him. "Would it be all right if I go into town?"

Cius relaxed slightly and smiled. "Of course. I'll take you back into the city myself. Do you know what kind of souvenir you were looking for?"

Daunte shook his head. "I-I was just looking for something for my little brother."

"Ah, then I know the _perfect_ shop for you!" Cius waved to him. "Here, I'll take you there quickly so you'll be back in time for the assembly."

Daunte followed Cius back out of the Parliament building and up the flight of stairs back onto the bridge. He almost asked if he could go into the Sun Palace and meet with Surya, but he didn't think that would be appropriate. They turned right to head back into the city.

"You're going to love this shop," Cius told Daunte when they reached the main plaza. "It opened up a couple months ago, but it's already caused quite a stir! I'm positive your brother will love anything you buy from here!"

"O-Okay," Daunte said.

They reached the shop in question, though Daunte was momentarily distracted by the positive chatter around them. Nobody had anything back to say about Queen Lymsleia or Commander Freyjadour. The populace seemed to genuinely love their Queen and her Commander.

 _It sounds like they rebuilt the country after a brutal civil war, even though they themselves were kids. It's pretty impressive._

"Mr. Mooney?" Cius called out as he pushed open the door. Daunte followed Cius inside and looked around. The shop was small but it was lined with display cases. There was a small display case in the center of the room, two along each wall, and one display case at the back where a man in his mid-thirties was standing. Daunte looked into one display case and gasped. All of the cases were filled with up to ten _wooden figurines_ each, each of which was thirty centimeters tall.

"Ah, Cius!" Mooney called out to them. He wore a round pale blue hat on his red head and he grinned at them with gleaming blue eyes. Mooney came out from behind the counter and Daunte's eyes fell to his hands. They were calloused and looked rough, but he held a peculiar knife in his right hand. "A pleasure as always!"

"Mr. Mooney, this is Daunte," Cius introduced them. "He's one of the dignitaries from Nagarea."

"Ah, I've heard about you all!" Mooney shook Daunte's hand and Daunte was startled that they felt as rough as they looked. "Welcome to my shop! Whittling has always been my passion, and so I'm _very_ pleased to turn it into a business that can make me a decent living!"

"Mr. Mooney has been all over the world and has heard many stories about many heroes," Cius told Daunte. "So he set up a shop here in Sol-Falena where he created figurines of heroes from all over the world."

"They're such interesting stories, with interesting people," Mooney told him. "I've made figurines of hundreds upon hundreds of heroes, but most recently I've focused my energy on five specific events in our world history that has shaped the fabric of civilizations."

"Really?" Daunte asked.

"Oh, most certainly!" Mooney walked over to a case close to the front door and put a hand on the top. "In this case I sell the heroes of the Gate Rune War."

 _Gate Rune War? Didn't that woman—Leknaat—say she had a Gate Rune?_

"In this case." Mooney moved onto the case next to it. "Are the heroes of the Dunan Unification War. It's very strange, though. When I first started making figurines of _this_ war, nobody paid much attention. But when I focused my attention on other events and other heroes, then all of a sudden _everybody_ wanted the figurines from this war! I can barely keep up the demand for these heroes as it is!

"Then in this case." He walked across the shop towards the other side and touched the case closest to the door. "Are the heroes of the Second Fire Bringer War."

 _Second Fire Bringer War? T-That's the War Caesar took part in!_ Daunte hurried over to this case to see if he could find a figurine of Caesar. To his disappointment however, he couldn't see Caesar amongst the photorealistic faces in the figurines.

"I always wondered, Mr. Mooney," Cius said. "You have figurines of the Second Fire Bringer War, but what about the _First_?"

Mooney shook his head. "Unfortunately I haven't found out much information about it. When I was in the Grasslands the Second Fire Bringer War was a much more popular topic, so making these figurines was far easier than trying to research the heroes of the Fire Bringer War. It doesn't help matters that the First one was over fifty years ago. Now in this one." He touched the case next to the Fire Bringer one. "Holds the heroes of the Islands Federation War. These, however, are _not_ as popular as the other ones for some reason."

"The Islands Federation War took place over one hundred years ago, right?" Cius asked.

"Yes," Mooney said. "Perhaps that is why these figurines are not so popular."

Daunte wondered how Mooney knew so much about a war from over a century ago and yet didn't know anything about a war from _half_ a century ago, but he didn't say anything about it.

"And lastly, my front display case and most popular one." Mooney gestured to this case. "These hold the heroes of the Falenan Civil War. _These_ figurines always go so fast."

"Yet Lelei's figurine always sells better than mine," Cius grumbled.

"Ah, but the Commander of the Queen's Knight's sells the best," Mooney said. "I always think I've made enough figurines of Prince Freyjadour, but I can never hang onto them long enough."

"It's no surprise," Cius laughed.

"What about this case?" Daunte asked, indicating the smaller case in the middle of the shop. This case only had five figurines in it.

"Those are my best sellers," Mooney said. "A lot of times I just put five figurines of Prince Freyjadour in it and they're quickly gone. But our other popular ones are the heroes Viktor and Flik, both of whom participated in the Gate Rune War and the Dunan Unification War. Because of their high demand their retail price is around 25,000 potch."

"He usually stores his most expensive figurines in this case," Cius told him. "Why don't you look at another case?"

"R-Right," Daunte said. He decided to try the front case that showed the heroes of the Falenan Civil War. Maybe he would be lucky enough to find a figurine of Surya's father?

He scanned the faces of the figurines inside the case, and saw a couple of the Dragon Horses, but the figurine at the very end caused him to stiffen and his blood ran cold. He stared down into the case, into the angry, frowning face of the figurine, and swallowed thickly. It was strange, so very strange…but it was impossible. It _couldn't_ be true.

 _T-This…This one looks like my father. I don't remember his face though, or Mom's. Yet how…I feel like this man is my father._

"Oh, do you like this one?" Mooney asked. He reached into the case and picked up the figurine in question.

Cius made a face at the figurine. "I remember him. He was always so angry all the time."

"The price is 200 potch for this figurine," Mooney told Daunte.

Daunte pulled out his bag and poured the coins out. But his stomach turned as he realized he was holding _bits_ in his hand and not potch. _Oh no. I completely forgot about this! I forgot that we don't use the same currency as everybody else!_

"200 potch?" Cius suddenly spoke up. He pulled out his wallet and counted out the coins. "Here you are, Mr. Mooney."

"Thank you, Cius," Mooney said. He turned to wrap up the figurine and Daunte gaped at Cius. _He paid for my figurine, no questions asked? But I don't know how I'm going to pay him back!_

"And here you are," Mooney said, handing the sales bag to Daunte. "Next time you visit, definitely stop back in to my shop. As each of these wars has hundreds of heroes, I'm constantly rotating stock. You'll always find something new here."

"T-Thank you, sir," Daunte said, bowing. He didn't say anything to Cius though until they exited the shop, and he immediately rounded upon the man. "I-I'm sorry for putting you in that position, but I _will_ pay you ba—"

"Nonsense," Cius said, waving a dismissive hand. "It's just 200 potch. It's barely pocket change to me."

"Nagarea has a different currency than Falena," Daunte confessed softly. "But I will pay you back someday, I promise."

"It isn't necessary," Cius reassured him. "My paying for your souvenir can never even measure up to everything _you've_ done for us."

Daunte gaped at him for a long moment. "But…I—"

"Ah, there you are!" Both of them stiffened, and Daunte looked over his shoulder. An older gentlemen quickly approached them. Daunte had to guess he was in his seventies, but he looked shockingly youthful. His dark green hair has silver lines running all through it and his face was covered in deep stress lines, but he was moving with surprising energy.

"Ah, Lord Craig Laden!" Cius exclaimed. He quickly saluted the other man. "Did you just arrive from Lunas?"

"When I heard that there would be Nagarean dignitaries in the capital, I knew I had to come down here as quickly as possible." Craig's eyes shifted to Daunte. "You are Lord Daunte, correct?"

"A-Ah, yes," Daunte said. He jumped slightly Craig reached out and seized Daunte's hands in his own.

"You have my thanks," Craig told him sincerely. "I know words are meaningless, but I am in your debt. Thank you for saving my daughters' lives."

Daunte blinked. "D…Daughters?"

"Lord Craig Laden is married to Lady Haswar," Cius explained to him. "He is the father of Lady Archana and Lady Kaylani. Both of whom you personally saved, Daunte."

"I-I…" Daunte felt incredibly embarrassed by the praise he was receiving from both men. "Thank you, b-but it wasn't just me. Many people contributed to their rescue."

"I imagine so, but no one else's name came up more often from my daughters than _your_ name, Lord Daunte." Craig released his hands and bowed deeply. "Thank you. I do not yet know how, but I _will_ repay you. I swear it."

"No, that's not necessary," Daunte said, raising his hands. "I didn't save them expecting repayment! It was the right thing to do! I-If Lady Archana and Lady Kaylani are alive and healthy, that's a better reward than anything else!"

Craig managed a small smile. "You have a good constitution, Lord Daunte. I am certain Nagarea's Liberation Army benefits greatly by your presence."

 _But I don't have a position of importance in the Army._ Daunte forced a smile. "I'm glad you think so, Lord Craig."

"I hate to interrupt Lord Craig, but the assembly is about to start," Cius gently interrupted. "I must escort Daunte back."

"Of course." Craig nodded and saluted. "I will be at the docks checking in on the Dragon Cavalry. Again, thank you for everything."

Daunte nodded stiffly and bowed. It felt awkward for him to receive this amount of praise when he hadn't acted alone. Cius gestured to him and Daunte followed. "Lord Craig Laden commanded the Dragon Cavalry from Sauronix Castle leading up to the Falenan Civil War, and retired after the war. He's still held in high regard, although his sudden marriage to Lady Haswar _did_ take people by surprise."

"How so?" Daunte asked.

"Well, _I_ never saw the two of them interact during the war," Cius said. "Rumors floated around that Lady Haswar had many concerns preserving the lineage of the royal family, especially since Queen Lymsleia and herself were the only female royals left. Then suddenly out of the blue, no sooner did Craig go into retirement, they were announced as being married. As far as I know they didn't even have an official _courtship_!" Cius chuckled to himself. "But they've had two wonderful daughters and have been married all this time, so they've definitely made it work."

"I-I'm glad to hear it," Daunte said. "Although I feel that I'm getting too much credit for the rescue of the royals…"

Cius stopped suddenly and turned to Daunte. "I just want you to know that all of us are in your debt. We know that many people were involved, but we know that _you_ also put forth the greatest effort in rescuing our royal family. We won't forget that, Daunte. That is a promise."

Daunte didn't know what to say as he followed Cius back to the Parliament building. _So…So they know that I did have a big role in rescuing the royals, and Lord Bearyl didn't? Does this mean that they_ _ **will**_ _enter into an alliance with us…or should I worried about how the assembly will go?_


	17. Chapter Two: Part Four

Part Four

Armed with his souvenir for Arin, Daunte followed Cius up the stairs onto the bridge. He cleared the top step when he heard someone shout, "Daunte!"

Daunte quickly looked towards the Sun Palace. A familiar face dressed in the uniform of a Queen's Knight was running towards him. Daunte broke out in a smile and waved. "Surya!"

"I can't believe you're here!" Surya laughed. Daunte held out a hand for a handshake, but Surya bypassed the hand and gave him a quick hug. "Gosh, it feels like it's been forever! How are things for you?"

"Better," Daunte said, which _was_ a bit true. "Arin seems to have made a full recovery. He was practicing swordsmanship when I left."

"What a relief," Mokuren said, and Daunte was embarrassed that he hadn't noticed her before. He also noticed that she wasn't dressed in a Queen's Knight uniform. "That poor boy looked so sickly for so long!"

"And what about you?" Surya asked Daunte. "How are _you_ doing?"

"Well, I found out the name of my Rune," Daunte said, raising his right hand slightly. "And it found out what some of its powers are."

"Yeah, that's always good information to know. How are Roen and Felicity?"

"They're good, too."

Surya nodded and laughed again. "It's kind of surreal seeing you here in Sol-Falena, Daunte. It's hard to believe it wasn't too long ago we were running all over Nagarea's countryside looking for my cousins!"

"I know what you mean. I feel the same way."

"And we are eternally grateful to the three of you for your work," Cius said. "Prince Surya, are you going to be in attendance for the assembly?"

Surya shook his head. "Dad said it wouldn't be a good idea. But once I heard Daunte was here, I raced over so I could see you before the assembly. They're about to start, but I still wanted to see you."

"That reminds me," Daunte said. He pulled out the letters from Arin, Roen, and Felicity and handed them to Surya. "These are from our friends."

"Oh, thank you!" Surya looked at the letters excitedly. "I can't wait to read them!

"Prince, I can have someone examine—" Cius began.

"No, that's not necessary. I trust Daunte." Surya looked at Mokuren. "Let's head back to the Sun Palace. I want to read these and write reply letters."

"That sounds good, Prince," Mokuren said. She suddenly pulled out a pink handkerchief and dabbed at her eyes dramatically. "Oh—parting is such sweet sorrow, but we must never forget the ties we leave behind!"

"I must be going," Surya told Daunte. "But I'll look for you after the assembly."

Daunte nodded. "Thank you, Surya."

The pair hurried off and Cius gestured to Daunte. "Shall we?"

Daunte was escorted back to the Parliament building. As they descended the steps to enter the main entrance, he became acutely aware of a…difference. When he'd initially entered with Bearyl and the others, the guards posted didn't give them a second glance. Now that he was walking alone with Cius, he saw that the guards were actually watching him. But he didn't see suspicion in their demeanor. They almost seemed to be looking upon him with _admiration_.

 _So they know as well. How many people actually know the truth about the events in Nagarea, though? If these guards know, then the Queen certainly knows._

"There you are," Caesar greeted him as Cius led him back into the waiting room. "They'll be calling us in any minute."

"What did you get?" Gunther approached him excitedly.

"Cius showed me a whittler's shop," Daunte said. He pulled out the figurine and carefully unwrapped.

"Wow!" Gunther gasped, snatching the figurine from Daunte. "This is incredible! I'm so jealous—maybe _I_ can go to that shop too!"

"They accept potch and not bits though," Daunte warned him.

"Ah, damn it all." Gunther huffed in disappointment, but handed the figurine back to Daunte.

"Are you both quite finished?" Bearyl asked irritably.

Daunte glanced at him briefly before bending his head to rewrap his figurine. _Is he in a bad mood? Maybe he's nervous._

Daunte tucked the figurine back into the bag when there was a sudden sharp knock at the door. They all snapped to attention as a guard opened the door. "Dignitaries of Nagarea, the Parliament is ready for you."

"This is it," Bearyl said, standing up. "Everyone, leave the talking to me."

"Of course, my Lord," Caesar said.

The five of them were escorted out into the main hall. The civilians and politicians who had been loitering around were gone, replaced with a heavy security of more soldiers and Queen's Knights. Daunte started feeling very nervous as they were escorted into the two-story room in the middle of the hall. Upon entering the large room Daunte was overwhelmed by the loud conversations overlapping in the room which immediately silenced as they entered. He craned his neck and saw that the building was packed to seemingly full capacity. On the second floor he saw several people crowded at the rail looking down at them. He lowered his gaze and saw red risers rising up towards the second and almost all of them were filled. In the center of the room the red carpet led to a podium. The group was directed to sit on a set of risers to their left and they all sat down.

Daunte continued to look around in amazement. The risers were also similarly filled, but they contained individuals wearing badges—no doubt the representatives of Falena. But it was striking how _diverse_ Falena's Parliament was. He saw humans made the majority, but he also saw dwarves and—and saw little fuzzy creatures that were small enough to be mistaken for plush toys. Yet these same small creatures were talking with the humans and dwarves, and the humans and dwarves answered them without hesitation.

 _Our Theocracy is run entire by humans. We don't have dwarves or those fuzzy creatures in Nagarea, but we_ _ **do**_ _have Wingers and elves. Yet neither race is represented in our government._

"All rise for her Majesty, Queen Lymsleia Falenas, Prince Consort Shoon, and Commander Freyjadour Falenas of the Queen's Knights!" a woman suddenly announced, standing next to the podium. She was in her forties, but she was strikingly beautiful. She wore curly tawny hair to her shoulders and she wore a flowing pink dress, in addition to a badge that identified her as a representative.

What was most striking about her was how…familiar she looked to Daunte. Daunte had never seen the woman before, but she still seemed familiar to Daunte. _She…this woman looks an awful lot like Mokuren. Are the two related?_

"Thank you, Luserina." A woman's voice echoed in the chamber. Everyone rose to their feet as a dark-haired woman in her thirties appeared at the main door led by Freyjadour. She was flanked by several Queen's Knights and a blonde-haired man in his early forties, dressed in well-tailored clothes that seemed to cling to his body. Daunte gulped audibly, knowing that this woman was surely Queen Lymsleia. She was dressed in a dark blue and pale orange _hanfu_ and she had an exquisite gold crown on her head. Her presence did not intimidate Daunte, but she revealed nothing on her face as she walked fully into the chamber. The group bowed to her as she passed, and she acknowledged their presence with a slight nod. She walked around the podium, nodded to Luserina as the woman curtsied to her, and walked up a flight of stairs to where a throne was waiting for her. The Queen's Knights dispersed throughout the chamber, and only Freyjadour and the blonde-haired man followed her up the stairs as she took her seat on the throne. Freyjadour stood to her right while the blonde-haired man stood to her left. Everyone then took their seats.

"I hereby call this Parliamentary assembly in order," Queen Lymsleia announced.

"Yes, my Queen," Luserina said. She raised a clipboard. "Onto our first order of business. Today we welcome special guests into our assembly—dignitaries from the Nagarea Theocracy."

The chamber exploded in loud conversation as the group stood back up. Bearyl grinned at Caesar. "We've been given the highest priority with the assembly today! This is a good sign!"

"My Lord, they're allowing us to go first so that we are not present while they discuss any possible internal disputes," Caesar told him softly. "It wouldn't be appropriate to talk about such things with foreign dignitaries present." Caesar's words, however, failed to deflate Bearyl's enthusiasm.

Lymsleia gestured with her hand and the chamber became silent once more. "Welcome to the Queendom of Falena, my guests. How have you liked our capital?"

"It is simply splendid, Your Majesty," Bearyl said, bowing respectfully. "And you have done us a great honor by inviting us here for your assembly."

"You have reached out to us with the offer of an alliance," Lymsleia said. "I have summoned all of my representatives of Falena's Parliament to hear your case, and so that we collectively can reach an agreement." Lymsleia gestured to the podium. "Lord Bearyl Lutis, the floor is yours."

"Thank you, Your Majesty." Bearyl strolled up to the podium and braced his hands upon. "My lords and ladies, our Theocracy has been on a rapidly downward decline in the last two decades. We are a nation built around the Nagarist Order, but not even true Nagarists are safe anymore from the manipulative machinations of the Cabinet of High Clerics. My people have been gradually beaten into submission, living lives where we have no choice but to duck our heads and listen and obey anything that is bade of us. Our Scriptures have been twisted to create skewered, blasphemous laws that punish anyone and everyone. Under the rule of our High Clerics, any infarction is punishable by death. Smuggling, forgery, adultery—even anything that they consider _blasphemy_ —my people are being killed for what they deem to be against our religious order."

Daunte was immensely impressed with Bearyl's diction. He spoke eloquently and with great enthusiasm. He looked around the chamber and saw that Bearyl had the attention of the entire room and everyone's eyes were on him.

"Incredible, isn't he?" Caesar asked Daunte. "Bearyl Lutis _was_ once a cleric of the Theocracy, so he has quite the power of persuasion with his words."

"But then he was accused of bribery and corruption and the Cabinet defrocked him," Varnaz said darkly. "The charges were completely unfounded, of course. They got rid of him simply because he was a threat."

"It's quite ironic that Lord Bearyl was dismissed on charges of corruption considering how corrupt our government currently is," Gunther muttered.

"I agree," Daunte whispered back.

"Daunte."

Daunte looked up, and the group snapped to attention. Bearyl was looking at him, and by extension the rest of the assembly was also looking at him. Daunte looked at Caesar, but the strategist also seemed confused. Daunte slowly stood up. "Yes, my Lord?"

"Daunte, please come here," Bearyl told him.

Caesar sucked in a sharp breath, and Daunte's stomach clenched. Bearyl wanted him to come to the podium? But he wasn't prepared for this!

 _But if I_ _ **don't**_ _go, then Lord Bearyl will look bad in front of the entire Parliament._

Daunte approached Bearyl and the podium, though his knees were shaking as he walked. "What is it, my Lord?" he asked, his voice a little unsteady.

Bearyl placed a hand on Daunte's shoulder and turned him towards Lymsleia. "This child is the living embodiment of the hardships my people face in Nagarea," Bearyl announced. Daunte immediately flushed and looked away from the Queen. "Our Theocracy fabricated a law so heinous that it is difficult to put into words. They call it "Original Sin", and under this law entire families are punished for the crimes of one family member. It is a way to scare my people into submission, and it has worked very effectively.

"Daunte." Bearyl gently pushed him towards the podium. "Don't be frightened. Tell them about what happened to you. What happened to your brother."

Daunte felt like throwing up. He knew he should've expected this when Bearyl invited him along to Falena, but it was still too much. They'd reassured him that he wouldn't participate, yet here he was, front and center in a chamber full of strangers, put on the spot to talk about the utter living hell he'd experienced for the last three years. He wasn't prepared at all—either verbally or _emotionally_.

"The boy seems very nervous," Luserina said suddenly, her tone soft. "Perhaps he does not need to speak—"

"M-My family was killed," Daunte said quickly. He was afraid that if he'd remained silent that Bearyl would lose face in front of the Queen and Parliament. And by extension they may lose an alliance with Falena. "Three years ago, my mother and father were killed by the Theocracy. They were deemed traitors and k-killed. Arin—my brother and I were considered "tainted" by their evil and so under Original Sin we were also arrested.

"B-But it…" Daunte shook his head quickly to clear it. "Original Sin stipulates that children are capable of banishing the evil inside of them. They just have to "work" for their forgiveness from Nagar, our god. So Arin and I were…t-there's an abandoned mine called the Dark Chasm. Arin and I were sentenced to hard labor in this mine, along with hundreds of other children convicted under Original Sin."

Soft murmurs filled the chamber from Daunte's words, and Lymsleia once again gestured for silence. "It must have been very difficult for you," she said softly. She held Daunte's gaze with her own. The kindness he saw in her eyes almost made him cry. "And it must be difficult for you to tell this story to us."

Daunte shook his head again, once again afraid of losing face for the Liberation Army. "A-Arin, he…he was only six years old when he was sentenced, and he became so sick from the living conditions we endured. He's now nine and he's smaller than other boys his age. And I—I had a friend named Kass who—" Daunte didn't know what had compelled him to bring up Kass, but tears stung his eyes the minute his friend's name past his lips. He ducked his head once more. "Kass was killed due to the conditions of the mine. He was given no funeral, and…" Daunte swallowed the hard lump in his throat and forced himself to calm down. He looked back up at Lymsleia. "It was awful. It still is awful for the children of the Dark Chasm. Arin, my friends, and I escaped with the help of Su—Prince Surya. Without him, we would probably still be there."

Murmurs rose once more, and Lymsleia shook her head. "I'm deeply unsettled that my nephew was brought to such a heinous place, and I'm glad he was able to help you escape."

"Daunte," Bearyl said behind him. "Daunte, show them your hands."

Daunte looked at him in shock, but Bearyl's face was unmoving. He didn't dare look towards Caesar or the others and turned back around. He didn't dare remove the glove on his right hand and expose his Rune of Restoration, but he did remove the glove on his left hand with trembling fingers.

" _This_ is the result of the care the Theocracy has given my people." Bearyl grabbed his left wrist and held up his battered hand for all to see. Muted sounds of horror and disgust filled the chamber. "This child's poor mangled fingers. Daunte, how many times were your fingers broken during your time in the Dark Chasm?"

"I-I don't know," Daunte mumbled, ducking his head again.

"He doesn't know," Bearyl spat, lowering Daunte's hand. "How much abuse can one child endure where they get to the point that they don't know how many times they've broken the same bones? And it isn't just Daunte—as he said, _hundreds_ of children in Nagarea suffer the same fate, and many more will unless I am successful! Unless my Liberation Army is successful! We must beat back these tyrants who suppress my people in such a horrific manner!

"Queen Lymsleia." Bearyl gestured to Daunte to move away from the podium, and Daunte gladly scrambled off of it. Bearyl retook his position on it. "I come to you asking for an alliance. I am but one man leading a small force against a corrupt Theocracy. Our shared history has been anything but pleasant, but I believe Nagarea is more than ready to join the modern age and allow bygones to be bygones. Most importantly, I believe that Nagarea needs to be free from vicious oppressors who have twisted our religious texts to suit their own purposes. The time is now, and I feel that the both of us could benefit greatly from alliance." Bearyl bowed deeply again. "Again, thank you for your time and consideration."

There wasn't an applause to follow his speech, but the chamber once more lit up in conversation. Lymsleia once again gestured for silence. "You have quite a way with words, Lord Bearyl. The Parliament will now have a discussion about your proposal and then vote on how to proceed. I must ask you to vacate this chamber until we are able to reach a decision."

"Of course, Queen Lymsleia." Bearyl bowed again, and Daunte stiffly bowed too. He saw Bearyl gesture to the others to stand up, but he kept his head ducked. He didn't say anything out loud, but he couldn't hide his discomfort over what had just happened.

 _I feel used. I can't believe Lord Bearyl would put me on the spot like that without asking me if I was okay to be talking about such things. Especially after lying to me about why I was being brought here!_

* * *

"My Lord, how could you do such a thing?!"

Daunte had been angry enough with Bearyl all the way from the chamber, and he'd felt like he would explode with his anger if he didn't unleash it. He fully intended on confronting Bearyl in the waiting room once they were left alone.

But Gunther beat him to the punch.

"How could you use the horrible experiences Daunte has suffered as a _selling tool_ with the Falenans?!" Gunther raged. The Lieutenant looked red in the face with fury, and Daunte stared at him in shock. "Have you no consideration for how _he_ might feel about it?!"

"I don't understand why you're angry, Gunther," Bearyl huffed. He unbuttoned a wrist cuff as he sat on the couch. "Daunte _did_ join my Army because of what he suffered under the Theocracy."

"But _you're_ the one who said this was a vacation for him!" Gunther shouted. Caesar said nothing, but stormed over to an empty couch and planted himself onto it. "I overheard what you and Lord Caesar said! You were _spoiling_ him! How is putting him on the spot like that and taking advantage of him in such a way spoiling him?!"

"Gunther, you will be quiet this instant," Bearyl told him harshly. "This is the most important political deal in the history of the Liberation Army! We must do everything we can to secure it! All of you should understand that!" He glared at Daunte. "For all of the trouble you have given me, boy, and what _little_ you have given to my cause, this mild discomfort you may be feeling pales in comparison! You owe me _far_ more than I owe you, so don't stand there acting indignant with me for expecting you to do no better than I would expect from _any_ of my soldiers!"

Daunte could feel his rage bubbling over. He bit down so hard on his bottom lip that he tasted blood, and he clenched his fingers as tightly as he could into a fist, which wasn't much. _I suffered. I suffered so greatly, and it doesn't matter to this man. All that matters to him is his own ambition. How could I be so_ _ **stupid**_ _to put my faith in him for anything?!_

A shadow suddenly fell over Daunte, and he found himself face-to-face with Varnaz. "Stand down this instant," the other man told him darkly. "Your body language and your expression easily tell me you mean to strike our Commander. I will not allow you to do that."

Daunte released his bottom lip, and felt a trickle of blood run down his chin. It was surprising how easy it was to suddenly shift his anger to Varnaz. He could tell that the Lieutenant General likewise saw him as a nuisance, and was nothing more than a "yes-man" to Bearyl. No matter what Bearyl did or said, Varnaz unflinchingly obeyed his commands and sided with him. His blind loyalty only seemed to make their circumstances even worse.

"And clean up your face," Varnaz snapped at him. The older man suddenly reached for Daunte's face, and Daunte reflexively swatted his hand away. "No—!"

The Rune of Restoration suddenly glowed on Daunte's hand from the brief contact of their hands, and Daunte grabbed his own wrist. _Wait, no! No!_

"What is the meaning of this?!"

Daunte blinked several times. He was no longer in the sitting room in Falena. No, he was now outside in front of a military barracks. The sky was overcast, and snowflakes were falling all around him.

"I demand answers! I have done _nothing_ wrong!"

Daunte looked to his left, and he realized he was surrounded by Theocratic soldiers in silver uniforms. Varnaz was standing in front of him, dressed in the Theocracy's uniform, but wearing a slightly pointed hood on his head indicating he was a lieutenant. However he was being heavily restrained by two soldiers that he clearly outranked.

"First Lieutenant Varnaz Behzadi." Another soldier suddenly came into view and stood in front of Varnaz. Daunte couldn't see his face, but he saw that this new soldier _did_ outrank Varnaz. It was probably his commanding officer. "You are hereby under arrest on charges of treason."

" _Treason_?!" Varnaz spat out, struggling violently. "This is an outrage! I am a loyal soldier of Nagar and of the Theocracy! Who dares accuse me of treason?!"

"You will answer for your treason in Mlkwt Alsmwat and be punished accordingly," his commanding officer continued.

"Who has accused me?!" Varnaz hollered. "I demand to see my accuser face-to-face!"

"Your accuser is Cleric Ramiro Lažov, and you will meet him for your sentencing."

Varnaz's face twisted up in shock. "R-Ramiro? Is this a damned joke?! Cleric Ramiro Lažov is my _brother-in-law_! How could he possibly accuse me of treason?! Bara would never stand for this!"

"It is he who has leveled the charges, and per Article Thirteen of our Holy Decree, you and your kin are guilty by-proxy," his commanding officer said.

Daunte stiffened. _Article Thirteen? Oh no…_

Realization quickly dawned on Varnaz and he gaped at his commanding officer. "What—What are you talking about?"

"Bara Behzadi Lažov has been accused and found guilty of adultery," the other man announced as though he were announcing the weather. "As you are undoubtedly aware, adultery is a crime punishable by death. Per the law of Original Sin, anyone who shares her blood is also guilty and will be sentenced along with her. As Bara is your older sister, you are hereby found in violation of our Holy Decree and thus guilty of treason."

Shock and horror filled Varnaz's face, and Daunte was equally horrified. Varnaz violently shook his head. "No! That is a lie— _that is a lie_! My sister is an honest and faithful woman! She would _never_ cheat on her husband! Never!"

"Varnaz Behzadi you are hereby stripped of your rank and livelihood and are thus branded a heretic and a traitor. We will escort you to the capital for your sentencing. If you refuse to cooperate, per Holy Decree we are authorized to use lethal force against you."

"No! I won't let this happen!" Varnaz was also to break free of the soldiers who held him. "I've done nothing wrong, and I will NEVER believe Bara committed adultery! Sir, _Sir_ , you've known me for years! I was your _squire_! Have I ever lied to you?! Have I ever done _anything_ to bring shame to our unit?! I've devoted _everything_ of myself to you—to this country! Please don't believe these lies! I know my sister, and I know that this is a mistake! M-My brother-in-law must have been mistaken, or—" he froze in his tracks as realization down upon him. "O-Or—Or did he simply _fabricate_ the charges?!"

The commanding officer swung the scabbard of his sword and struck Varnaz along the side of his head. The world vibrated and swirled as Varnaz collapsed to the ground and slowly lost consciousness. As the vision faded away, Daunte heard the commanding officer say, "Shackle the traitor."

Daunte sucked in a sharp breath and squeezed his eyes shut. He pressed his right hand over his heart, which was thudding strongly, and pressed his left hand over the True Rune. _Why…Why do you activate at random intervals and show me such things?_

A hand touched his shoulder, startling him. "Daunte, are you all right?"

Daunte slowly opened his eyes. His vision was hazy, but he knew he was back in the sitting room. He forced a smile and nodded stiffly at Gunther. "I-I'm fine."

"You _should_ clean up your face," the man said softly. "You won't make the best second impression on the Parliament if your face is bloody."

"R-Right." Daunte wiped at the blood on his chin and glanced at Varnaz. He paused when he saw the expression on the Lieutenant General's face. The man looked stricken, and there was a note of outrage in his eyes as he looked at Daunte. It was very surprising. _Did…Did he also see the memory I saw? But nobody else I've interacted with when my Rune triggered seemed to have noticed that I accidentally saw their memories!_

There was a sudden knock at the door, and a clerk stuck his head in. "Excuse me, sirs. The Parliament has reached a decision."

"So soon?" Bearyl asked, quickly standing up.

"I thought that such a thing would take hours at the very earliest," Caesar said. Daunte didn't like the uneasy tone in his voice.

But Bearyl didn't notice and grinned. "Of course they voted in our favor. I'm very adept at swaying people to my side. Let's go and forge our alliance!"

Varnaz finally looked away from Daunte and stormed out of the room after Bearyl. The anger Daunte felt towards the man dissipated very slightly. _So he was also convicted under Original Sin? And it was highly likely the charges were false? I feel terrible for him…by why is he always so hostile towards me? I was also convicted under Original Sin!_

He shook his head, not wanting to think about it anymore, and left the waiting room.

* * *

The loud conversations in the Parliament chamber silenced once more as the group was escorted back in. They almost moved to sit down, but Luserina instead gestured them forward to stand at the podium in front of the Queen. Bearyl took his place at the podium, while Daunte and the others lined up behind him.

"Parliament will now come to order," Luserina announced. The chamber fell to absolute silence. "Dignitaries of Nagarea, we have discussed at length your proposal for an alliance, and after careful deliberations and a Parliamentary vote we have decided—"

"Yes?" Bearyl asked eagerly.

"—to _deny_ your offer."

Bearyl visibly deflated right before their eyes and Daunte ducked his head. He glanced at the others and only saw that Varnaz was shocked and outraged. Neither Caesar nor Gunther looked at all surprised.

"We know nothing about Nagarea," Lymsleia spoke up. She leaned forward on her throne. "We have no maps, no knowledge of your political system other than that it is a Theocracy. We don't even know the population size or how many people actually _want_ change in the country. But most of all we know nothing about your Liberation Army."

Bearyl stiffened, but Lymsleia continued. "You have demonstrated to me the plight of your people, but you haven't indicated to me what you would do if you're successful in your civil war. You've told us none of your plans of how you are going to make things better for your people, or the direction you would take our potential alliance. And you've told us nothing about the structure of the Liberation Army itself. What this indicates to me is one of two things: one is that you do not have an actual plan laid out for if you succeed—but I doubt this because you wouldn't have any allies if did not have such a plan. So that leads me to the second theory—that your forces have dwindled and you have reached out to Falena as a means to rebuild your Army.

"It is because of the efforts of your men Lord Bearyl, that my children and my nieces and nephew were successfully rescued. But you have given me no substance and no cause to lend you any aid at this time. There is too much uncertainty in forming an alliance with you, and I cannot commit my soldiers to an unknown cause that may be doomed to failure."

"How—" Bearyl was shaking violently, and Daunte suddenly filled with dread. _He's losing his temper. Uh oh._

"How _dare_ you speak that way to me?!" Bearyl hollered. "I saved your children and I saved your kin! They would still be captured or _dead_ if it were not for me! Is it the policy of Falena to simply _take_ what they want from others and not give anything in return?!"

Rumbles of outrage filled the room, and Daunte saw Luserina frown with visibly fury, but Lymsleia was unmoved. She even gestured to the gallery to remain silent. "After everything I've done for the royal family," Bearyl raged. "The very least you can do—"

"Everything that _you_ have done for the royal family?"

Heads snapped up at this new voice. Daunte turned his head towards the throne. The blonde-haired man at Lymsleia's left had stepped forward.

"The assembly recognizes Shoon, Prince Consort and husband of Queen Lymsleia," Luserina announced.

"Unless I am mistaken, Lord Bearyl," Shoon said darkly, leveling the man in question with a heated glare. "And unless my own children are mistaken, you did not personally see to the rescue of _any_ of the Falenan royals. Did you?"

Bearyl flushed, and floundered on his words before he spoke. "It was my Army that gave the Falenan royals safe haven. It was my soldiers that rescued them from their captors. It—"

"But was it _you_ who did any of these things?" Shoon interrupted him. "Did you give the order for _any_ of these actions? Or are you simply taking the credit from others and claiming it as your own?"

"This country _owes_ Nagarea!" Bearyl shouted, jabbing at nothing with his index finger. "The current state of my country is entirely _your_ fault! The original Cabinet of High Clerics was assassinated and taken over by high-ranking assassins from Nether Gate! _Your_ assassin group! The assassin group _you_ banished to Nagarea! If you had handled those bastards when you had the opportunity, then nothing that _any_ of us has suffered would've happened!"

" _W-What_?!" Daunte burst out, and quickly slapped both hands over his mouth. He looked at Caesar, who had a grim expression on his face. "It's true. The current Cabinet of High Clerics are made up of former members of Nether Gate, that assassins group I told you about when you discovered Raging Nostrum."

Both Freyjadour and Shoon looked outraged by Bearyl's accusations, but Lymsleia still did not visibly react. "I believe you are mistaken, Lord Bearyl. My mother Queen Arshtat did not simply corral the worst of Nether Gate and herd them into Nagarea. She disbanded Nether Gate, and the assassins fled this country instead of assimilating into society like civilized people, or answering for their numerous crimes. However, I do acknowledge that we could've possibly have done more to bring these unsavory characters to justice and you have my sincerest apologies that they have brought so much ruin to your country.

"Even though we have voted against committing our troops to your cause, I would be more than happy to provide food provisions and medical supplies for your soldiers, as a gesture of good w—"

"I will not accept your pity, Your Highness," Bearyl retorted. "It is an insult against everything I stand for! You may call it good will, but I see it for what it really is—a half-hearted gesture to make yourself look better!"

"Oh?" Shoon asked, his tone incredulous. "Did you not use that poor boy's personal tragedy to make yourself look better?" Shoon was looking pointedly at Daunte.

"What do _you_ know of personal tragedy?!" Bearyl challenged.

Shoon's gaze shifted back to Bearyl. "A lot more than someone like you would understand. While I am understanding of your outrage, you _will_ stop spouting insults at Her Majesty. Do I make myself clear?" He spoke with a tone that brokered no compromise, and he held a stance that indicated he would spring into action if necessary. He was unflinching, unafraid—it was very clear the Prince Consort was _far_ from a pampered royal.

Bearyl shifted, and looked like he would say something else, but then Freyjadour stepped forward. The Commander of the Queen's Knights said nothing, but he didn't _need_ to say anything. His authoritative presence and challenging glare to Bearyl was more than enough to silence the other man. Daunte couldn't help but be impressed.

After a long moment, Bearyl turned. He still held fury in his face. "This was a waste of time. We are leaving now."

"Lord Bearyl, you and your comrades do not leave to leave so soon," Lymsleia told him. "You have traveled a great distance, and despite our refusal of alliance I will not cast you out of my country so callously. I would be more than happy to accommodate all of your for another night."

"With all due respect, Your Majesty, I have left my Army without a leader and I must return post haste. And my must return quickly now that I know I was brought here on a fool's errand." He stormed off the podium and towards the door. "Let's go. I want to be back in Nagarea by tomorrow morning."

The group turned to go. Daunte followed the group but stopped in his tracks when Queen Lymsleia called out his name. He avoided Bearyl's gaze and looked at Caesar, but the strategist also looked surprised. Daunte knew if he left without answering the Queen that it would probably be taken as a greater insult than everything Bearyl had said. He slowly turned and walked back towards the throne. "Yes, Your Highness?" he bowed awkwardly.

"I have heard many great things about you, young man," Lymsleia told him. "My nephew has done nothing but sing my praises. And I must say I'm _very_ pleasant to meet my future son-in-law."

Daunte flushed dark crimson as the chamber filled with rambunctious laughter. Shoon even cracked a smile before remembering himself. Lymsleia continued. "But I digress. I just wanted to give you my thanks for saving my children and my nieces and nephew. My family is very dear to me and it would've devastated me to lose even one of them. I know that you contributed greatly to the rescue of all of my kin, and I am eternally grateful to you."

Freyjadour left Lymsleia's side and walked over to stand in front of Daunte. Daunte was a little intimidated to be under this man's scrutiny but he reminded himself that Freyjadour was Surya's father, and that this man was also a national hero. Freyjadour still said nothing. After a few moments of silence the Commander broke out in a smile and reached out his hand to Daunte. Daunte gaped for a moment before accepting Freyjadour's handshake. It was a surreal feeling.

 _Do these people really hold me in high regard? I-I think they're giving me too much credit, but it seems like they're reacting this way to me based on what Surya and his cousins told them._

Freyjadour released his hand and Daunte breathed out a short laugh. He hung onto his smile as he turned to leave, but the smile quickly left his face when he saw the look Bearyl was giving him. He lowered his head and hurried after the group out of the Parliament chamber.


	18. Chapter Two: Part Five

Part Five

There was a chilling silence within the group as they followed Cius back to Sol-Falena's docks. Bearyl was practically stomping with each step, and breathing heavily through his nostrils. Daunte held onto his souvenir for Arin, and remained silent.

 _While Queen Lymsleia made some valid points, were they really considering an alliance with us or did they have no intention of forging an alliance? It seems odd they invited us all this way just to reject us. There must be something else going on…_

"Here we are," Cius said, leading them to their boat. Daunte noticed that many of Sol-Falena's guards were glowering at them but Cius remained pleasant. He wondered if the man had heard all the insulting things Bearyl had said to the Queen, or if he was simply being polite for appearance sake. "As promised we are returning your weapons."

Two guards stepped forward with their weapons and Daunte happily slid his tekko on. Cius was about to speak again when a shout interrupted him. "Please, wait a moment!"

Daunte's mood brightened considerably at this voice and he turned to see Surya and Mokuren racing towards them. "Hey, Prince!" Gunther called out, laughing a little as he waved. "You look so professional in uniform!"

"That's because I _am_ professional," Surya said, but there was no bite to his tone. He held onto his smile as he approached Daunte. "I had heard you guys were about to leave. Do you really want to go so quickly? We can hold you guys up at the inn free of ch—"

"We appreciate the offer Your Highness, but we really must decline," Caesar told him.

Surya looked disappointed but nodded. "Then I'm glad I got here when I did. Daunte." He reached into an inner pocket and produced four envelopes. "I wrote you guys some letters. Please make sure everyone gets theirs."

Daunte accepted the four letters, seeing each labeled 'Daunte', 'Roen', 'Felicity', and 'Arin'. He nodded eagerly. "I will, thanks."

"And here," Surya said, gesturing to Mokuren. The young lady stepped forward and Daunte noticed that she was holding an old worn book with a blue cover. "Arin's penmanship has gotten better, but I thought that he could use an extra reading material. We would like for you to have this book. It's about the Falenan Civil War, but I hope you still find enjoyment from it."

"Thank you, I will." Daunte accepted the book. He opened it to a random page and placed the letters inside. _This way I know they won't get wet or damaged._

"Well," Surya said, looking at the others. "No matter what our Parliament decided, I wish you all the best of luck."

"Thank you, Your Highness," Caesar said, bowing slightly. Bearyl said nothing, the rage still visible in his expression and body language as he climbed into the boat.

Daunte was disappointed he wouldn't be able to spend more time with his friend, but he shook Surya's hand. "It was nice seeing you."

"Likewise."

* * *

"My Lord, I hope you realize why they rejected our alliance."

The escort back to the Hersheville Base and then to Falena's coastline had been in total silence. Daunte welcomed the silence, even though the tension was thick in the air and he knew it was only a matter of time before there was a blowup.

The minute the Hersheville ships left them alone, Gunther leveled Bearyl with a simple statement.

"Really?" Bearyl asked darkly. "Please express your opinion then, Gunther, as to why they rejected our alliance."

"Isn't it obvious?!" Gunther snapped, not bothering to show respect towards his leader. "You made a spectacle of us! You propped yourself out there as being the _sole_ savior of the Falenan royals—not at all considering the fact that _maybe_ Prince Surya would tell his aunt about the numerous times you refused to help him! Particularly when you chose to invade a Garrison instead of saving the future Queen! Then you humiliate Daunte—" Gunther gestured to Daunte. "—by putting him on the spot where he felt compelled to relay a personal tragedy to complete strangers, without _any_ regard for how _he_ might feel for this! The only thing you managed to demonstrate to the Falenans was that you have an ego, and that the feelings of the men who serve under you are inconsequential to your ambition!"

"The only thing demonstrated with this assembly," Bearyl retorted. "Is that our historians were right all along about the Queendom of Falena. They are a _rat's nest_ of heathens, who breed demonic abominations like Dragon Horse's, and they will _use_ people in vulnerable positions to get what they want and then discard them when they have no more use for them! I did _far_ more for the kidnapped royals than their own Queen did, and this is the thanks I get?!"

"But you didn't do _anything_ , Lord Bearyl!" Gunther shouted with frustration. "All you did was open the headquarters to the royals—but even then you treated them like they were freeloaders! You refused to give direct aid to Prince Surya when he asked for it, you refused to give aid to the Crowned Princess when there was a _perfect opportunity_ to do so, and yet despite all of this you still tried to claim credit for everything?! And you sit there and act indignant that Queen Lymsleia refused you?!"

Bearyl abruptly stood up and went toe-to-toe with Gunther. "What exactly are you implying, Gunther?"

"I don't think Falena rejected an alliance with us for selfish reasons. They _clearly_ rejected an alliance because of _**you**_!"

"Seize him!" Bearyl snapped at Varnaz. Their boat came to an abrupt stop in the middle of the Feitas and Varnaz roughly grabbed Gunther. "Lieutenant Gunther, I place you under arrest for insubordination!"

"I-Insubordination?!" Gunther sputtered. "All I did was speak my mind!"

"Nobody speaks to me like that without punishment!"

"Oh, so you're oppressing my right of speech sir?! How is that any different than what the Theocracy is doing?!"

"Be silent and sit down, soldier!"

Daunte looked back and forth between the two, not knowing what to do. Luckily he didn't have to do anything.

"My Lord." Caesar had stood up and was looking at Bearyl. "Lord Bearyl, rescind your order this instant."

"W-What?" Bearyl demanded incredulously.

" _Rescind your order_." Caesar's voice was calm and low, but the tranquil fury emulating from his tone was far too noticeable. "We have too much at stake for you to be arresting one of our lieutenants for running his mouth. It would be one thing if he did this in front of our soldiers, but it's _entirely_ another matter when he does this in private and gives you constructive criticism."

"I need people who are _loyal_ to me," Bearyl sneered, glaring at his strategist. "Who are loyal to my cause! If my own lieutenant cannot show loyalty to me, no one else will!"

"My Lord, we are _losing_ this war." Caesar's tone was still calm but the fury was gradually building and building in his voice. "We are losing because we have done _nothing_ to inspire the people of Nagarea into believing in us. They instead have dismissed us as being heathens and terrorists, and have outright resisted our attempts to liberate them! But most of all we are losing this war because we are losing allies and we have not successfully forged other alliances! And yes, part of why we aren't succeeding is because of you!"

"You—"

"Your stupid pride and narrow-mindedness has cost us dearly," Caesar cut him off. "If you ever expect to come even _close_ to winning this war, you need to swallow your pride, accept criticism, and humble yourself to your allies and your subordinates when they try to help you! Do you understand me, sir?"

Bearyl got toe-to-toe with Caesar, glaring straight into his strategist's face. But the younger man was unflinching and returned his glare steadily. For a long moment nothing was said, and the other three watched the two most important members of the Liberation Army have their standoff.

After a very long minute, Bearyl turned away from Caesar. "Varnaz, release Gunther. Let's get out of here."

Varnaz released Gunther and shoved him into his seat. Bearyl slammed down into his seat as Varnaz cast a spell from his Flowing Rune and the boat started moving again.

Daunte looked at the other four men in the boat and then looked down at his own lap. Realization slowly dawned on him and it made his stomach clench in discomfort.

 _This Army is doomed._

* * *

They left Falena and sailed along the coastline back towards Nagarea. It was deep in the night by the time they finally spotted the Northern Wharf. No one said a word for the duration of the journey.

Two Liberation Army soldiers were waiting for them on the beach, and raced out to help them pull the boat onto the beach. "Welcome back, sirs! How was the assembly?"

Bearyl jumped out of the boat and stormed up the beach, not saying a word. The rest helped the soldiers pull the boat further up the beach. Once that was finished, the group stayed briefly to stretch their limbs. There was a half-moon in the sky, and Daunte pulled out the old book. Now that they were out of the water he took the four letters out of the book and examined them in the moonlight. _I'm surprised Surya was able to write four letters so quickly, but I can't wait to deliver these. And he wrote me a letter too. I wonder why?_

Daunte noticed something out of the corner of his right eye and looked out towards the ocean's horizon. He saw nothing but darkness over the water, but—it was strange. In the darkness he saw a yellow light glow briefly before it disappeared. He blinked in confusion. _What was that?_

"Hey."

Daunte jumped at this voice and turned. He hadn't noticed Bearyl returning but his leader was now standing in front of him and glaring. "Y-Yes, my Lord?"

"Those letters that Prince Surya gave you. Hand them over to me this instant."

"W-What?" Daunte asked, and flinched slightly when Bearyl's glare darkened. "My Lord, these are just personal letters!"

"You received a series of letters from a foreign prince. You will hand them over to me for me to examine. You will get them back afterwards. This is for the safety of the Army."

Daunte didn't understand the logic of that, but he knew Bearyl was already in a bad enough mood as it was. He knew he could either hand over the letters or refuse him again. It was a tough decision, but…

"Sir, these letters aren't just mine," Daunte insisted. "Surya wrote them to my friends, too! Please, you have nothing to worry about! Surya is our friend and these are just friendly letters!"

"That's not for you to decide." Bearyl reached out and grabbed the letters in both hands. "This is an order. Hand them over to me _now_."

"Sir, they're personal letters!" Daunte refused to let go of the letters. Bearyl tugged one way and Daunte tugged the other way. Bearyl wrapped both of his hands around the envelopes, and Daunte felt his grip slipping. Then—

RIIIIIIIIP!

Daunte flew backwards and landed hard on his backside. He felt the letters in his hands, but they were much smaller. He looked down and saw just tattered remains. He looked up and saw torn pieces of the letters on the sand. Bearyl looked surprised for a moment before unceremoniously dropping the pieces he held onto the sand.

Daunte snarled, and jumped to his feet. Before he could stop himself his anger took the better of him and he shoved Bearyl hard in his sternum, causing the older man to tumble backwards into the sand. He was still seething when Bearyl shouted, "Seize him!"

Daunte was grabbed from behind by the two Liberation Army soldiers, and Bearyl scrambled to his feet. "You're under arrest for assault and insubordination!"

The anger dissipated quickly within Daunte as he realized what he did. _I-I just attacked the leader of the Liberation Army!_

"I've had enough of your childish antics," Bearyl snapped at him, brusquely brushing out his clothes. "Varnaz, ensure this _boy_ gets the treatment he deserves when we return."

"Yes, sir," Varnaz responded.

Daunte looked over at Caesar and Gunther but saw that neither one were stepping forward to do or say anything. Caesar even opened his hands as though to silently say that there was nothing he could do.

"Let's get out of here and deal with this back at headquarters!" Bearyl barked. Daunte was dragged up the beach by the soldiers, and he didn't fight them. Gunther brought up the rear, his expression stony.

But Caesar lingered on the beach. Daunte saw the Army strategist collecting the discarded remains of his ruined letters before he pulled down the hill and the Wharf disappeared from sight.

* * *

Lord Lorik Varra rubbed a hand over his face as he regarded the man before him. "…You are certain?"

"I am _most_ certain, my Lord," the soldier said. "Sheikh Sloan Faakhir has gathered his forces and is advancing here as we speak."

"How much time do we have before he arrives here?"

"Based upon their movements, they will arrive here in about three days."

Lorik slowly nodded. "Thank you for the information. We'll need more reinforcements on the walls, so send the word out to collects as many arrows as possible. We'll also need to run another evacuation drill, so make sure our exit is secure as well."

"Yes, my Lord." The soldier saluted and hurried from the room.

Lorik looked over his shoulder. "Tala."

"Yes, my Lord?" the young lady stepped forward.

"I want you to take our fastest horse and ride for the Liberation Army headquarters. I want you to appeal to Lord Bearyl for assisting. Tell him _anything_ he wants to hear, but we must have his assistance."

"My Lord, my place is at your side," Tala said. "I will not leave you undefended."

"Tala, I—"

"I will _not_ leave you undefended, my Lord! Even if I manage to rally the Liberation Army to help us, there is a real risk we might not get back here in time! I will not leave you in this dire hour!"

"All right," Lorik interjected. He walked towards the window and looked out over his town. The entire town of Agameru was preparing itself, or at least what was left of the people who hadn't already fled. "Then we should send one of the townspeople to the Liberation Army headquarters. I don't believe they will take kindly to one of my soldiers. I'll write a quick letter to Lord Bearyl to appeal to him."

"Will he respond to us?" Tala asked him.

"I hope so," Lorik said softly. "I don't see how we can survive this otherwise."

* * *

"Hey."

Daunte looked up. The minute they'd returned to headquarters his tekko was confiscated and he was escorted to a cell. It was a typical prison cell in the bottom of the castle. All of the other cells were empty, though Daunte had overheard some soldiers say that the cell he currently occupied had previously held a traitor who sold information to Sheikh Keiran Umed.

 _But I'm not like that other person. I'm not a traitor to the Army._

"Hey," the prison guard said through the bars. He was a typical Liberation Army soldier but he didn't look upon Daunte with malice. Quite contrary, the man looked amused. "I heard you physically assaulted Lord Bearyl. Is that true?"

Daunte stared at him for a long moment. He debated if he should confirm the gossip or to remain silent. Ultimately, he shrugged. "I shoved him down."

To his surprise, the guard burst into laughter. Daunte watched as the man hunched over, slapping his knee and laughing hysterically. It wasn't the response he was expecting. "Oh—Oh I _wished_ I had been there to see it!" the guard choked, wiping at tears in his eyes. "You had the guts to shove our leader down like the punk that he is!"

Daunte blinked once, and then twice. "Um—"

The guard sighed and shook his head as the laughter cleared up. "It was a long time coming somebody standing up to him! Believe me when I say we've had all we can stand from Lord Bearyl Lutis!"

Daunte gaped at him and the guard continued. "I'm from Barakada. I joined the Liberation Army after word got out that Sheikh Keha Hale had intended to use Lady Allise to raze our fields. I thought I could make a difference and help steer Nagarea on the right path. But this—" the guard gestured with his hand. "Lord Bearyl has made some questionable decisions. Not to mention the fact that he never admits when he's wrong about something. And this isn't just a new phenomenon, kid—it's _always_ been like this. It didn't use to be so bad. I mean—Lord Bearyl use to _understand_ how important it was to not burn any bridges! But as the Army's size grew, so did the size of his ego. And well—" the guard shook his head. "The number of deserters we've been having should be more telling than anything else how much he's failing as a leader."

"Excuse me," a voice called from upstairs. Daunte immediately perked up at this voice and the guard snapped to attention and grinned at Daunte. "Well, it looks like you have a visitor!"

Daunte approached the bars as Arin came down the stairs and appeared in view. The boy was holding the figurine Daunte had purchased for him. "I'll let you guys talk," the guard said. He headed up the stairs and out of sight.

"Brother, what happened?" Arin asked him. "Why did they arrest you? I-I'd heard it was because you knocked Lord Bearyl down, but that can't be true! Can it?"

"It's true," Daunte told him. "I knocked Lord Bearyl down and he had me arrested."

"B-But why did you shove him down?"

"Surya wrote us some personal letters. Lord Bearyl tried to confiscate them and no matter how many times I told him they were just personal letters he wouldn't let go. The letters ripped, and…" Daunte shrugged. "I lost my temper."

"B-But that's ridiculous!" Arin snapped. "Why would he try to confiscate our letters?!"

"He thought it was a matter of security for the Arm—"

"But you told me Prince Surya isn't in line for the throne and was just a Queen's Knight and not a politician! So why would Lord Bearyl think that these letters had _anything_ to do with our Army's security?! And if he was so concerned about the contents of the letters, why would he need to read them personally?! Ms. Gizli is a forger, right?! Wouldn't she be better for the job?!"

Arin made excellent points but Daunte didn't like seeing him so upset. "It's going to be ok—"

"I want to leave."

"Eh?" Daunte gaped at him. "What?!"

"I don't want to be here anymore," Arin said hotly. "I'm grateful that this Army made me better, but I don't think we're going to win Daunte. I have a bad feeling that something terrible will happen. We need to leave."

"Arin, we can't just leave! I made a commitment to this Army, and they saved your life! Besides, we _are_ still wanted criminals! This is the only safe place for us!"

"How safe are we, Brother? You were arrested for _shoving_ our leader! And that was after he provoked you! You're being treated like a traitor for shoving that blowhard down! And me…" the child ducked his head. "I don't think I'm welcome here."

"What do you mean?"

"I haven't forgotten, you know! When Roen said that they didn't want me around! I tried to ignore it but I've heard it, Daunte! They think I'm a nuisance!"

"Who told you that?" Daunte snapped, feeling the anger well up inside of him once more.

"I know that Lord Bearyl talks about me like that! And the soldiers—the soldiers find me annoying!" Arin was becoming more and more upset. "I've tried so hard not to get in the way, but so many people don't like me! I don't know how to make them like me because they don't want me around!"

"Arin, please calm down." Daunte reached through the bars and ruffled Arin's hair. He suddenly saw the Rune of Restoration glow and he quickly jerked his arm back. He didn't want to see into his little brother's mind.

But—But it was unavoidable. It was for a brief instant, but an image filled his mind. It was a woman's face, and she was smiling and laughing. Daunte felt his heart lurch and he sucked in a sharp breath.

"…Brother?" Arin asked softly. "Are you okay? I'm sorry, I don't mean to—"

"No." Daunte quickly shook his head. He reached out his left hand this time and placed it on Arin's shoulder. "It's going to be okay, Arin. I'll take care of you, I promise."

"I'm not worried. You've always taken care of me. The reason we're even here right now is because you were taking care of me. But Daunte—we're not being taken care of, not truly. You're working so hard and nothing you've done seems to matter to Lord Bearyl. He doesn't like you, or me. I-I just…" tears leaked out of his eyes and he quickly wiped them away and sniffled. "I'm just _scared_. I hate seeing you like this."

"I'm going to be all right. This is just a minor bump in the road. Lord Bearyl was wrong for ripping the letters, but _I_ was wrong too. I'll apologize to him the next time I see him, and then from now on I just won't bring any attention to myself. I'll do what I can to keep us both safe. So don't be upset, okay?"

"O-Okay." Arin used his sleeve to clean up his face and forced a smile. "Thank you for the figurine, Daunte. It's so cool to have one."

"I'm glad you think so."

"This soldier looks a lot like Papa though, doesn't he?"

It still shocked Daunte how amazing Arin's memory recollection was. He stared at his little brother for a moment before nodding. "I thought so, too. You should go back to our room and play with him."

"O-Okay. I'll come back later to visit you."

"I look forward to it."

Arin hurried up the stairs, and Daunte approached the bench in the cell and collapsed onto it. He was suddenly overwhelmed. The fact that Arin remembered their father, and the woman he'd seen—the high cheekbones, thin black eyebrows, and kind dark eyes. Her smile was so radiant...you would never feel apprehensive in her presence, and her aura was just _inspiring_.

 _Her face…that was Mother, wasn't it?_

Their parents had died three years ago, and Daunte had forgotten what they'd looked like. But Arin—when he'd touched his brother's head he'd seen his mother's face. Either Arin had a crystal clear memory of their family, or Daunte triggered a memory that had been buried deep.

 _If I touch my own head, will I see my own memories?_ He raised his right hand to his forehead, but he hesitated. After a moment he dropped his hand down into his lap. He couldn't control the memories the Rune of Restoration invoked, and he didn't want to risk seeing something…unpleasant.

Daunte looked at his surroundings in silence for a long moment. Then he looked up at the ceiling. _Did you have these same troubles when you lead your Liberation Army, Mom?_


	19. Chapter Two: Part Six

Part Six

"I'm sorry, but we're following orders. Lord Bearyl has told us to not allow anyone from Agameru on the premises."

"Then please just give him this message!" the messenger thrust the letter into the soldier's hands. "Please give this to him and tell him we need help! Sheikh Sloan Faakhir is coming after us, and unless we have the help of the Liberation Army then we will all surely die!"

"Why are you staying in Agameru to fight?" the second soldier asked. "What is Lord Lorik Varra thinking, making a stand like that instead of fleeing?"

"We're dead either way!" the messenger seethed. "Where in the name of Nagar are we supposed to go?! We're just a small hamlet, but that's still almost three hundred villagers! A group that size traveling the countryside?! _Everyone_ will know who we are and everyone will come after us! Staying to fight may not be the best decision, but fleeing en masse isn't much better!"

"All right," the first soldier said. "I'll take this to Lord Bearyl immediately. If you wait here—"

"I can't wait for a response!" the messenger turned on his heel. "I have to get back and protect my family before the Sheikh's forces arrive! If the Liberation Army means to answer us, then send us a reply with troops!" the man sprinted back to his horse without waiting for a reply.

The two soldiers watched him leave in silence. Then the second one spoke up. "You took his message. Will you deliver it despite Lord Bearyl's order to burn all messages from Agameru?"

"Of course I will," the first soldier said gruffly, turning towards the stairs leading into the castle. "It's the right thing to do. I know I'm disobeying orders, but I won't have the blood of those people on my hands by following that idiotic order."

The second soldier watched him leave before hurrying after him. "I'll come with you. Hopefully Lord Bearyl will see reason, but if not I don't want you getting into trouble by yourself."

* * *

Caesar saw the soldiers enter the war room while the other lieutenants of the Army prepared for their meeting. He hurried over to them. "Is there a problem?"

"This just arrived." One soldier handed Caesar the letter. "It was from a m-messenger from…Agameru." His voice dipped low when he said the last word, and the second soldier looked away.

Caesar looked at the letter for a long moment before forcing a smile at the soldier. "Thank you both for your hard work. I will announce this letter during our meeting."

"Y-You're not angry with us for disobeying orders?!" the second soldier hissed. They both looked shocked.

Caesar's smile broadened. "I don't know what you're talking about. Now, return to your posts."

Both men stammered before saluted. "Yes, Lord Caesar! Thank you, sir!" they hurried from the war room.

Caesar opened the letter and swiftly read it. He revealed nothing on his face, and after finishing the letter he tucked it back into its envelope. He held onto the letter and deliberately did not approach Bearyl as they all took their seats at the table. "This meeting will come to order," Bearyl announced. "We have a pressing matter to discuss—"

"Yes, indeed," Caesar interrupted, standing up. He held up the letter. "We've just received word that Agameru is about to be razed by Sheikh Sloan Faakhir's forces. Lord Lorik Varra has humbled himself with this letter and has requested our assistance."

The table broke out into loud conversation from this news. Bearyl's face, however, was unmoving. "May I see that letter, Caesar?" he held out his hand.

"Certainly, my Lord." Caesar gave him the letter, even as a light feeling of dread suddenly swept over him.

Sure enough, Bearyl did not read the letter. He held it over a burning candle on the tabletop and the paper caught fire. Caesar did not react at all to this, but Gunther jumped to his feet. "My Lord!"

"I thought I was clear with my orders," Bearyl said. He held the burning letter between two fingers until Varnaz gestured with his hand and water splashed onto it. All that remained of the letter a charred, shriveled paper. "That the people of Agameru are not welcome here and we are not to accepted letters from them."

"But they need our help!" Gunther exclaimed. He didn't bother hiding his outrage. "The Sheikh will murder _everyone_ in that hamlet!"

"That is not our concern. Lorik Varra made it no longer our concern when he resigned from my Liberation Army."

"S-So you're just going to abandon them all to die?!"

" _How_ exactly are we abandoning them to die?" Varnaz spoke up. "Lorik Varra withdrew from the Army of his own volition. He is no longer our ally so we are not abandoning him. He knew the risks when he joined the Liberation Army, and he knew the risks when he left us. He should've realized the fate he was condemning his people to when he pledged himself to a cause he had no intention of following through with."

"To get back on track," Bearyl said darkly. "We've been having a serious problem of insubordination throughout the Army. It was too clearly demonstrated with _your_ outburst—" he glared at Gunther. "And with _your_ defiance of my orders." He then glared at Caesar.

Everyone at the table suddenly tensed with their commander's reprimand of his strategist. But Caesar remained calmly and bowed respectfully. "You are right, my Lord, and I apologize for defying your orders."

"…Fair enough," Bearyl said. Caesar sat back down, as did Gunther. "But this infighting is doing us no favors and must stop. I was assaulted by one of my own soldiers, and I cannot allow it to stand."

"Assault?" Gunther sputtered. "Daunte only shoved you down! It's not like he tried to kill you or anything! He lashed out at you in anger!"

"I'm the leader of the Liberation Army and he put his hands on me in an aggressive fashion," Bearyl retorted. "The Theocracy has punished people for far less offenses and I must make an example of him so that none of our other soldiers decide to attack me in a similar fashion."

"Daunte is a survivor of the Dark Chasm," Allise spoke up. "Making a public example of him may draw more backlash from our allies than support. I feel that we should confiscate his weapon and put him under suspension."

"We've already induced that punishment on him," Varnaz pointed out. "And that was for insubordination. Now he's facing assault charges. We cannot give him the exact same punishment we gave him for his previous offense!"

"Then what do you suggest we do? Scourge the child in front of the Army? What kind of message will that send to both our allies and the neutral people of Nagarea if we beat a boy who's already suffered considerable physical and psychological abuse? And for what—for acting childishly?"

"Allise is right," Gunther said. "Daunte may have behaved childishly, but we have to remember that he _is_ a child! He's not a grown adult in full control of his emotions! We cannot handle his case as though he were an adult!"

"Are we really making _this_ the center of our meeting?" someone spoke up sharply. "I think we have far bigger things to worry about than the minor infractions of a teenage boy!"

"Yet he put his hands on me with the intention of doing me harm," Bearyl interjected. "No matter what, he must answer for this!"

"What do you suggest we do, my Lord?" Caesar asked. "Will we suspend him or publicly punish him? Will we dishonorably discharge him from the Army?"

Bearyl's expression only grew grimmer. "He is a nuisance who has done next to nothing for my Army, and yet he is also a danger to us because of the True Rune on his hand. It might be in our best interests to hand him over to the Theocracy."

" _WHAT?!_ " Gunther and Allise shouted in unison. The other lieutenants similarly exclaimed in shock.

"Turn him over to the very Army we're fighting?" Caesar said, not bothering to hide the shock from his voice. "My Lord, need I remind you what Daunte has _already_ suffered at the hands of the Theocracy? And do you realize what they will do to him once they get ahold of him?"

"I'm thinking about the long-term effects," Bearyl said. "I thought Daunte could serve us with his True Rune, but he hasn't. He can't even grasp the Rune's power. We know that the Rune's first spell is a healing spell, so we know it isn't a weapon of mass destruction. The Theocracy cannot use it against us, so by giving them access to the Rune that will give us an opportunity to—"

"There must be another way."

The table immediately fell silent and everyone gaped at Varnaz. Bearyl's best friend was actually staring at him with open disapproval. "I don't deny that Daunte must be punished for what he did, but handing him over to the Theocracy is not an option. It _cannot_ be an option. The Theocracy's reach covers the entire country, so even their possessing his True Rune will not make them stall. It will only invigorate them to crush us. Not to mention the fact that Daunte was convicted under Original Sin—they will surely kill him if they capture him again. I will not give the Theocracy any more power, and I will not have Daunte's blood on my hands."

"…Varnaz," Bearyl said quietly. "There might be a—"

"I will not support such an action, my Lord," Varnaz interrupted him. "So please do not ask me to."

A long period of silence followed Varnaz's proclamation. It was the very first time any of them had seen Varnaz speak against Bearyl. Bearyl himself looked at a loss for words but Varnaz's expression was unmoving. It was obvious he would not be swayed from his point.

"…All right," Bearyl said finally. His tone was low and full of obvious fury. "Daunte will be suspended. Again. And his weapon will be confiscated."

"Great," another spoke up. "Now can we move on to another topic? Like the issue with Agame—"

"I've already made it clear that I will not help them," Bearyl said harshly. "They sealed their fates when they left us! I wash my hands of them, and the rest of you will too! Is there anything else to report?!"

Another long moment of silence hung in the room before Allise slowly stood up. "Yes, my Lord. We've heard various rumors coming out of Tenaga…"

* * *

That evening the guard came down the stairs and unlocked Daunte's cell. "You're free to come out, but you've been suspended again. Your weapon will be returned to you after Lord Bearyl feels that you've served your punishment."

Daunte was very surprised with such a lenient punishment, and he was so relieved that he wasn't upset about not having access to his tekko. "I understand. Thank you."

Daunte's surprise only grew when the guard reached out and clapped him on the shoulder. "We've got your back, kid. We've seen how hard you've been working and how you've not reaped any rewards for it. We've also seen that you haven't complained once. It's incredible seeing someone so mature for your age."

Daunte was moved by his words and he smiled at the other man. "Thank you, sir. I appreciate it."

"I'm sure you want to see your friends, but it's pretty late. You should head off to bed."

"O-Okay." Daunte nodded and hurried up the stairs. Some of the relief he felt ebbed a little bit once he was upstairs, however. He saw soldiers standing around, and several of them silenced when they saw Daunte. But Daunte didn't see derision or disapproval in their expressions. Perhaps they were talking about him, but…maybe it was with positive words?

" _We've got your back, kid."_

It was hard to believe that these soldiers would have his back, especially after he disobeyed orders so many times. But Daunte did like having someone look out for him for once.

Daunte debated going to look for Roen and Felicity, but he also remembered he'd asked Oboro to look for new recruits for the Army and wondered if he should go and visit the detective. As he debated however, he was startled by a shout. "I see they let you out!"

He relaxed slightly when Caesar approached him. The strategist was wearing his usual lazy smile. "H-Hello, sir."

"Come on, no title for me Daunte." Caesar shook his head. "Well, I'm sure you're aware of the extent of your punishment."

"I've been suspended until Lord Bearyl feels I've served my punishment."

Caesar shrugged. "I'd say give it a week and you'll most likely get your weapon back. Don't sweat it, kid."

Daunte shifted a little where he stood. "I-I…I wanted to apologize for my behavior. I shouldn't have put my hands on Lord Bearyl. It won't happen again."

Caesar looked surprised by his words. "That was very mature of you, Daunte. It's a pity most adults can't humble themselves this way."

"C-Can I see Lord Bearyl? I wanted to apologize in person."

"I…don't think that's a good idea, kid." Caesar put a hand on his shoulder and steered Daunte towards his room. "His Lordship isn't in the best of moods this evening. But I _will_ pass along your apologies to him."

"Right, thank you."

"Also…" Caesar's voice trailed off as they walked along. The strategist looked over his shoulder as though to check and see if they were being watched. Daunte almost looked as well, but then Caesar drew his attention again. "I wanted to give this to you." He reached into an inner pocket and pulled out some paper. The paper was heavily wrinkled, and it was shiny, very shiny. It glimmered in the lamp light in the hallway. "I'm sorry for invading your privacy, but I needed to read this thoroughly in order to get it right."

Daunte accepted the paper. It was three sheets that were folded. They crackled loudly when he unfolded them. He saw smudged handwriting on the pages, and it looked uneven. At the top of the first page he saw the words, _"Dear Daunte—"_

Daunte's head snapped up and he gaped at Caesar. The strategist stared back at him bemusedly. "C-Caesar. You…" Daunte held up the pages. "This is my letter, isn't it? The one from Surya? The one that got ripped up? You—"

"I'd love to take all of the credit, but Gizli gave me considerable help," Caesar told him. "It took us a long time, but yes. We were able to salvage the letters written to the four of you and reassemble them. Roen, Felicity, and Arin got their letters already so I thought it was appropriate for you to receive yours no—GUH!" Caesar choked as Daunte suddenly crushed him in a tight hug. "Okay, okay kid. You're welcome, now let me go."

"Thank you so much!" Daunte released him and looked at the letter. "I'm going to read this right now!"

"I hope you enjoy it." Caesar took his leave with a slight wave.

Daunte quickly entered his room, glancing up briefly to see Arin buried in the old blue book Surya had given him. _"'—wardrobe was covered in chains and locks and looked very for-for-for-body—_ oh!" Arin brightened when he saw Daunte. "Brother! They let you out?!"

"Yes, but they still have my tekko." Daunte walked over and ruffled Arin's hair as he glanced down into the book. "You're enjoying Surya's gift?"

Arin made a face. "Surya's letter was easy to read, but this book is much harder! How do I pronounce this word?" he pointed out the word in question on the page.

"Foreboding," Daunte said, enunciating the word for him. "Just take baby steps with this, Arin. There are some adults out there who don't know how to read so you don't need to push yourself so hard."

"But I _want_ to learn how to read! I want to be able to read many different books!" he paused when he saw the letter in Daunte's hand. "Oh, is that Surya's letter to you? Will you read it out loud to me?"

"Ah, I think I'll read it to myself first. He _did_ write us two different letters after all." Daunte headed over to his own bed.

"I'll let you read mine!" Arin held up his own letter.

"We'll see, Arin. Let me see what Surya wanted to write to me first."

"Oh, all right." Arin huffed in disappointment, but he didn't stay disappointed for long. "Can we go to Sol-Falena someday? Surya wrote about so many amazing things about the city in his letter to me!"

"Someday, Arin." Daunte focused on the letter he held in his hands. If Arin said anything more, Daunte didn't hear it.

" _Dear Daunte,_

" _I'm sorry for the poor quality of this letter, but I guess this is what happens when I make split second decisions like this. Mokuren is gesturing to me now. I think she wants me to tell you she said 'hello'._

" _I never thought I would miss Nagarea so much after everything I've been through, but I do miss you guys. Sometimes when I'm walking around the Sun Palace I find myself looking for you guys as if I expect the four of you to be right here with me. I wasn't kidding when I told you guys that you were welcome to come and live in Falena. My aunt the Queen has already said it was okay, and she's taken great pleasure in teasing Farrin about her new "fiancé"."_ Daunte twitched when he read that one line, but continued reading. _"Uncle Shoon is_ _ **far**_ _less amused by Aunt Lym's teasing, but I don't expect him to treat you with anything but respect during your assembly._

" _To be honest, I'm writing you this letter because Father and Aunt Lym have requested that I limit my association with you dignitaries. However they hasn't outright forbidden me from seeing any of you, which is the main reason I'm writing this letter to you now. I wanted you to know that Aunt Lym will_ _ **not**_ _consent to an alliance with the Liberation Army."_

Daunte stiffened, and his fingers tensed around the paper. _Queen Lymsleia had already decided to not forge an alliance with us? Then why invite us at all?_

Sure enough, Surya answered his question with the next sentence. _"After we receive the emissary from Bearyl Lutis, Aunt Lym felt compelled to invite him here to hear him out. She knows, Daunte. She knows Lutis did next to nothing for us and launched a futile campaign instead of aiding my uncle in rescuing Farrin. But she still wants to give the man a chance to speak his mind and to prove her wrong. And she realizes that though Lutis did little for us, she knows that people within the Army still helped us. But from my own association with Lutis, I can already predict how the assembly will go."_

So the assembly had been less an attempt at an alliance and more of a test of Bearyl Lutis's character. And Bearyl Lutis failed it. Daunte shook his head furiously and continued reading. _"I have a feeling that Aunt Lym will reject the alliance proposal, but I want you to know that it's not because of the Liberation Army, or because we're isolating ourselves from Nagarea. If the Parliament ends up voting against the alliance, it will be_ _ **strictly**_ _because of Bearyl Lutis. Aunt Lym doesn't trust him, and though we know the rest of the Army is not like him he is nevertheless the leader of the Army. If we cannot trust the leader of a potential ally, then any sort of alliance would be doomed from the start. So no matter what happens, I want you to know that Falena isn't going to forget what you did for my family. If we vote against you, it is a vote against Lutis and_ _ **not**_ _against the Army itself."_

" _I don't think Falena rejected an alliance with us for selfish reasons. They clearly rejected an alliance because of_ _ **you**_ _!"_

Daunte didn't think Gunther would take any comfort at this point at being proven completely right. He closed his eyes and let out a harsh breath. _So, Falena's Parliament rejected an alliance with us solely because of who's leading our Army. How many other alliances are we going to lose for this same reason?_ He opened his eyes and saw a final paragraph on the last page.

" _But I don't want you guys to be worried. If Aunt Lym rejects your alliance proposal now, that doesn't mean her rejection is permanent. The Parliament can be swayed in the right favor in any number of different ways. However, since this alliance hinges on the actions of the Liberation Army leader, he would need to be the one who can steer us back on the path to an alliance. And if he can't, well…then I think your Army is smart enough to find somebody who_ _ **can**_ _."_

Well, Surya was never a subtle person. He was basically telling Daunte that Bearyl needed to be removed from power if an alliance between Falena and the Liberation Army were to move forward. But what could Daunte do with this information? He wasn't a general or a lieutenant. He had no standing in the Army! Who would listen to him?

" _I'm sorry for invading your privacy, but I needed to read this thoroughly in order to get it right."_

Daunte snapped his head towards the closed door and his breathing turned ragged. _Caesar. Caesar read this letter. And if_ _ **I**_ _understood Surya's message about kicking Bearyl Lutis out of power—then Caesar_ definitely _understood it._

* * *

Daunte woke the next morning to shouting and loud arguing. A sickening feeling filled his gut, and he knew something terrible was wrong. He shoved back the covers and looked over to Arin, who was huddled on the bed frightened. "Stay here," Daunte told him softly.

"Daunte, don't leave me alone," the child whispered to him.

"I'll be right back, I promise." Daunte quickly got changed and opened the door. The arguing only increased in volume and he stared down the hallway. Several groups of Liberation Army soldiers were huddled together, shouting and gesturing angrily.

"We did nothing! _We did nothing_!"

"We weren't given the orders to move out!"

"But that messenger came yesterday! We could've done something and we didn't!"

"The message said the Sheikh would attack in three days, but the Sheikh attacked _last night_! We would've never made it in time even if we all left immediately after the messenger did!"

"But we STILL could've done something! We abandoned them to die!"

"Felicity!" Daunte shouted, catching his friend. He raced over to her and saw that her face was ashen, and she looked on the verge of tears. "Felicity, what happened?"

Felicity opened and closed her mouth silently for a few moments before she finally spoke. "Agameru…is gone."

"WHAT?!" Daunte shouted, gaping at her. "Gone?! What do you mean _gone_?!"

"Sheikh Sloan Faakhir led his main forces to the hamlet," Felicity said softly. "They'd thought he would arrive in three days, but the Sheikh surprised everyone with an ambush last night. And they…they k-killed everyone. Men, women, children—they slew everyone they could find. Nobody was spared."

Daunte thought he was going to throw up and he covered his mouth. His knees weakened and he felt light-headed. It was too horrible to be true, but he knew it _had_ to be true. _Oh Nagar…he killed everyone? There's nobody left alive?! Lord Lorik and Tala and all those people…_

He couldn't stop the sickening guilt that consumed him. Even though he knew he couldn't have made much of a difference himself, he couldn't help but feel that he had abandoned those people to die. _I saw them. I saw them all and I left them to their fate. I should've stayed behind. I should've done something for them! I'll never forgive the Sheikh for this! Never!_

"T-They think there may have been survivors," Felicity continued. "I guess the scouts reported they didn't find Lord Lorik Varra's body, so he must've escaped somehow with a group of survivors. But they said…" she quickly shook her head. "They said Agameru was flattened to the ground. There are no buildings left standing, and they just _left_ the bodies lying in the ruins. H-How…" tears were now spilling down her cheeks. "How could this happen? How could the Sheikh conceive of doing such a horrible thing?"

Daunte didn't know how to answer her. The news that there _could_ have been survivors was uplifting, but not by much.

"Guys."

Both Daunte and Felicity jumped as Roen approached them. Felicity quickly wiped the tears from her face. "R-Roen. You've heard?"

"Can we talk?" he didn't bother hiding the fury from his face.

"S-Sure," Daunte said. "Let's go to your room, though. I don't want to alarm Arin with news of what happened."

The trio quickly headed off for Roen's room, leaving behind them the violent arguing that still occurred amongst the soldiers.

Roen slammed the door shut behind him. "Can you believe this?!" Roen demanded. "We had ample opportunity to give aid to Agameru, or to least help evacuate the town, and we did nothing! What was Lorik Varra _thinking_ , trying to make a last stand against the Sheikh?! What made him think he could stand a chance?!"

"He probably thought he had no other options and didn't know who he could trust," Felicity said softly. "That many people on the road would've drawn so much attention…"

"So they just remained like sitting ducks waiting to be slaughtered?!" Roen scrubbed a hand over his face. "And the Liberation Army—what a joke! Bearyl Lutis ought to be ashamed to give his Army such a name when he doesn't do _anything_ to help _anyone_!"

Daunte couldn't argue with Roen about Bearyl's total inaction, but he let out a sharp breath. "Lord Bearyl didn't kill the people of Agameru. Sloan Faakhir did, and we should be directing our anger towards him."

"They said that the Sheikh was monstrous," Felicity said. She took a seat down on Roen bed. "T-That he used a Rune to summon monsters and to strike people down. I-I guess an eyewitness said his ferocity grew greater and greater every time he used the Rune. By the end of it all, he was covered in blood—"

"Enough, please," Daunte said, shuddering. He clenched his hands into fists as best as he could. "I will make that man pay for this. I don't know how, but he won't get away with this! I swear he won't!"

Roen slowly paced the room before turning back around to face Daunte. "I really think we need to leave, Daunte. It was a mistake to come here."

Anger snapped through Daunte quickly and he advanced upon his friend. "And go _where_ exactly, Roen?! Do you want to run away to Falena?! Do you want to forget about the children suffering in the Dark Chasm?! Or how about the people suffering everywhere else in Nagarea?! What about the people of Agameru, huh?! If you want to leave, Roen, go ahead! But I'm not running away!"

"Daunte, Original Sin—"

"Is a _damned lie_!" Daunte hollered. His raised voice startled the other boy. "I told you that Nether Gate assassins took over the government, Roen! They're the ones who invented Original Sin! _They're_ the ones who've been oppressing us this whole time! They're not our true leaders, or even true believers in the Nagarist Faith! They've perverted our religion to force us into submission! So I don't want to hear you say another word about how we all deserve to suffer in the name of Nagar!"

"Daunte, I _deserve_ to suffer!" Roen shouted back. The other boy looked stricken. "Daunte, what I've done—what my father did—I deserved my punishment! Original Sin isn't to blame for it when I deserve it!"

Daunte looked at him for a long moment. "…What are you talking about, Roen?"

Roen looked like he was on the verge of tears. He wiped at his mouth before speaking. "I didn't go with you when you went to Kõrkus, but you heard the stories didn't you? About Kõrkus's Chapel?"

Daunte raked over his memories of that day. So much had happened during their trip to Kõrkus—meeting Nash and Sierra, rescuing Princess Signe, and witnessing Sheikh Keha Hale trying to murder Allise—that he almost couldn't remember gossip he'd overhead. But—

" _I can't stand looking at it. I loved the old Chapel. I still can't believe a heathen used the power of a Rage Rune to blow the old Chapel up. We lost so many people that day."_

"I-It was blown up with a Rage Rune," Daunte said softly. He looked at his friend as realization dawned upon him. "Roen. Did—"

"It was me," Roen said, his voice suddenly meek. "That was my fault."

Daunte gaped at him in horror. He tried to formulate words, but couldn't. He looked at Felicity and saw that she was also at a loss for words. He stammered for a moment before speaking. " _You_?!"

"More precisely, it was my father." Roen slowly sat down beside Felicity on the bed. He looked like he was in so much pain. "B-But I knew what he was going to do and didn't tell anyone. H-He told me it was for the good of the country, and I believed him. I-I mean, what kid wouldn't believe their parent?"

"Roen, you were just a kid—" Felicity began.

"Felicity, I was _thirteen years old_ when it happened! I was old enough to know right from wrong and I did _nothing_! I convinced myself that what my father was doing was right, and so I didn't tell anyone and I didn't stop him! I-I…" he shook his head. "I even went with him the day he did it."

"Roen, if you told anyone you still would've been convicted under Original Sin," Felicity said softly.

"But all those people wouldn't have died. Father told me that the Chapel was empty, but it—it wasn't. It was full of people for a special service when he used his Rage Rune. H-He…" the boy was trembling as he recounted the memory. "T-There was over a hundred people in the Chapel. There were no survivors. I could hear their screams from where we hid, and we were thirty meters away! Father told me the Chapel would be empty, that nobody was going to be hurt! But he—" he looked at his friends. "I saw it in his face, guys. He _did_ know people were going to be in there! He knew, and he still did it!"

This revelation had a sobering effect on Daunte. Roen, more than Kass or Felicity, had always believed they deserved to be punished. That they needed to repent to Nagar for their sins. It had bothered Daunte because it made Roen seem like a closed-minded believer blind to the suffering around them.

But this—this was different. Roen wasn't talking about them collectively when he spoke about their repentance. He was talking about _himself_. He felt he was just as responsible for those people's deaths as his father, and so he suffered because he felt he deserved it. And he didn't speak badly against the Theocracy because his father had committed a heinous act on the belief that it was "for the good of the country".

"They executed everyone in my family." Roen was now looking down at his hands. "Nobody was spared. T-They didn't execute me, but they forced me to watch their executions. My father, he—he _laughed_ during his execution! And I couldn't understand it because he'd damned us all with his actions, but he didn't care! How…" Roen looked up at Daunte. "How is this Liberation Army any different than men like my father? Bearyl Lutis may not have killed those people, but he might as well been swinging his sword cutting them down along with the Sheikh's forces! We _cannot_ follow such a man anymore, guys! We need to get out while we still can!"

Before either Daunte or Felicity could respond, there was a sharp knock at the door and a soldier poked his head in. "Lord Bearyl Lutis just called an emergency meeting outside. He's ordered everyone to come outside."

Roen gave them a look of disapproval but they all nodded. They left Roen's room and followed the flow of Army soldiers outside. Most of them were still grumbling in outrage. Daunte caught a glimpse of Arin, who was clutching his figurine to his chest, and he rushed over to his little brother to take his hand and guide him along.

The bulk of the Army grouped outside at the bottom of the steps. Daunte caught sight of Jantu, Liron, Oboro, Gunther, Allise, Cairoh, Gusoku, and Gizli spread out amongst the troops. He didn't see Clara, but he had to guess that the doctor was still tending to patients.

Bearyl Lutis stood at the top, with Caesar and Varnaz at his side. Varnaz had a stern expression on his face, but Caesar's face was expressionless. Bearyl stepped forward and looked out over his Army. "I know you all must have heard by now," he began. "And I understand the outrage you all feel. What Sheikh Sloan Faakhir has done to the people of Agameru is heinous and inexcusable. I wish with all my heart that Lord Lorik Varra had not quit our Army, for I feel this could've been avoided had he stayed with us."

The soldiers around Daunte stirred. While some murmured their agreement with Bearyl, others were still angry. He pulled Arin closer to himself.

"But we must take this tragedy as a reminder of why we must succeed," Bearyl continued. "And we must remind ourselves how committed we must be to this cause! Lord Varra was not committed to our cause, and unfortunately his people suffered greatly for his indecisiveness. We must learn from Agameru that we must be vigilant, and we must keep fighting!" He drew his sword and pointed it towards the sky. "We _will_ succeed! In the name of all those who lost their lives, we will avenge them and we will never let this happen again!"

Soldiers around them cheered, and Daunte felt incredulous. _He's blaming this entirely on Lorik Varra! But HE was the one who refused to help Lorik and punished anyone who even associated with Agameru! Lord Bearyl is just as much as to blame as Lorik is!_

Daunte felt a tug on his hand and he looked down. The sorrow in Arin's face was heartbreaking. "Can we go back to our room?" he asked softly.

"Sure," Daunte said. He looked at Roen and Felicity. "I-I'll catch up with you guys later."

"Right," Roen said, nodding.

"I'm going to check with Gunther and see if I can go out on a mission," Felicity said. "If I just stay here and do nothing I'll go crazy."

Daunte wanted to get out of the castle too, but he knew that was impossible so long as he remained suspended. He nodded to his friends and led Arin back into the castle. The mood in some of the soldiers around them had improved, but Daunte didn't take comfort in it.

"Were there any survivors in Agameru?" Arin asked softly.

"T-They believe so," Daunte reassured him. "I'm sure some people got out of there."

Arin shook his head. "It shouldn't have happened at all, Brother."

"I know, Arin."

"—can't just leave!"

Daunte skidded to a halt as they reached the floor with their room. There was a group of twenty Army soldiers in front of them. All of them were arguing.

"Oh yeah? Just watch me!" one soldier barked. "I refuse to serve such lowly scum as Bearyl Lutis!"

"Do you know what happens to deserters, soldier? They are put to death!"

"I don't care! Working for that bastard _is_ a death sentence! If he abandoned one hamlet to die, just imagine how easily he could abandon any of _us_ to die! I did not join the Liberation Army to just sit on my hands and do nothing while innocent people are being murdered!"

"He's right!" another shouted. "The bigger this Army has gotten, the bigger his Lordship's ego has gotten! And why are we even calling him 'his Lordship' anyway?! He's not a lord, just a defrocked Cleric! He doesn't know the first thing about running an Army!"

"He has Varnaz and Gunther—"

"Yeah, and when has he even yielded either of their advice, huh?! Or the advice of his damned strategist?! He just does whatever he damn well pleases, the hell with the rest of us! This is not a person I'm willing to die for!"

Daunte knew what was going on. Several of these soldiers were planning on deserting the Army. He couldn't blame them entirely, but he still developed a sick feeling in his stomach. He wanted to say something, but was also afraid to speak up. Ultimately, he hung onto Arin's hand and impulsively moved forward. "What's going on?"

The soldiers flinched at Daunte's question, but relaxed when they saw him. "It's none of your concern," a soldier said harshly.

"Daunte, we cannot stay here," another suddenly interjected. "You've experienced firsthand just how Lord Bearyl is abusing his position of authority and is completely bungling this war! We're on the losing side because of that man, and he's going to get us all killed!"

"So you're going to desert?" Daunte asked. He looked at each soldier. "You made an oath to the Liberation Army. We all did. We're the only ones fighting to make things right. If we don't persevere, the children in the Dark Chasm are going to die! So many more people are going to die because of the corrupt Decrees the Theocracy keeps instituting! We must do something, and we won't accomplish anything by running away!"

"Unless Lord Bearyl wizens up, we're not going to succeed anyway," another soldier quipped.

"Guys," Daunte said. "We _must_ keep fighting. We have to take down the Cabinet of High Clerics!"

"They are just clergy—" another began.

"No, they're not," Daunte interrupted him harshly. "They're assassins from Nether Gate. They murdered the previous High Clerics and took their positions! They're using the Nagarist religion against us to force us into submission! They don't give a damn about us or our beliefs—they're using twisted methods to turn us against each other and in order to maintain more power! So we _must_ keep fighting, if for no other reason than to ensure that they are gone, and that we can stop this insanity!"

The soldiers gaped at Daunte in horror, and Arin also looked horrified. "T-The High Clerics…are just _assassins_?!" the main deserter breathed.

"Yes," Daunte told him, inwardly shocked that Bearyl Lutis never divulged this information to his own soldiers. "So no matter what you may feel about Lord Bearyl, he at least understands our religion and would never, _ever_ do what those assassins have done! We must have faith and we must keep faith or else this will never end!"

"Daunte speaks the truth." Oboro suddenly approached. Daunte started, having not heard him walk up. "Everything you believe in has been perverted by cruel, calculated monsters. It is imperative that you stop these monsters. All of you are necessary for this fight, and we cannot be fighting amongst ourselves."

"How do you know so much?!" someone snapped. Daunte was also curious about how Oboro knew so much.

"Because I'm a detective," Oboro answered, handing him a small card and smiling. "It's my job to know."

A long period of silence followed. Arin stepped closer to Daunte and hung onto his hand tighter. Finally, another soldier stepped forward. "Why do you defend Lord Bearyl so strongly, Daunte? He's brought you a lot of embarrassment and unnecessary discomfort. I think you have more to complain about than the rest of us, and yet you encourage us to stay? Why?"

Daunte knew he could answer them many different ways—to tell them to mind their own business, to tell them what he _really_ thought about Bearyl, to be really haughty, and to be humble and speak his mind. Finally, he said, "I want to make things right and I believe the Liberation Army can do that."

Surprisingly, the soldiers seemed to accept this and nodded amongst themselves. "Then we'll stay and fight. But only because you're giving us reason to fight, Daunte."

Daunte was shocked that he, a seventeen year old boy, brought inspiration to men and women who were easily over ten years older than him. He nodded shakily. "T-Thank you."

"I will stay too!" Arin declared. "And I will stay because of Daunte!"

The soldiers burst into laughter and Daunte managed a soft laugh as well. Despite his own misgivings, he'd prevented soldiers from deserting. _Hopefully they won't end up dead for staying._

"Very impressive, my Lord," Oboro spoke to Daunte softly. "Gunther may have had a point about letting you be the spokesperson for the Army."

"Thank you for your help, Oboro," Daunte told him.

Oboro bowed slightly. "Anytime."

* * *

Sleep did not come easily to Daunte in the following days. He was still anxious about everything that had happened. Felicity had found Gunther, who was _more_ than happy to take her out on a supply mission, and Roen decided to join them. Daunte also wanted to join them, but he could not do so without a weapon.

Two nights later he found himself sitting on the front steps of the castle, mentally drawing constellations in the sky. Seeing the stars reminded him of Leknaat, and what she had said to him. _"Of the 108 Stars in our sky, of heaven and earth, you have been enveloped by the most important star of all."_

He couldn't properly count the stars in the sky to determine if there were exactly 108 stars, and he wondered which one of them was the Tenkai Star. It was, after all, the Star that was supposed to be guiding him. _She said I was guided by the most important star in the sky. But if I'm so important, then why am I not doing anything to make a difference?_

He heard a rustle in the grass below and he quickly glanced down. His eyes went wide as he saw a body hunched over a worn-out horse. The sky blue hair on their head was dirty and messy, and his clothes looked singed. Daunte saw by the person size that they were a teenager—maybe Daunte's own age. Daunte bolted down the stairs and caught the boy as he fell. A crossbow fell from a strap on the boy's back and clattered to the ground. "A-Are you all right?!" he shouted.

"…H…" the boy's voice was weak and his breathing was shallow against his arm. "H-Help me. Help m-m-m…" he slumped against Daunte and said nothing more.

Daunte twisted his head back towards the castle. "HELP!"

* * *

"He's exhausted and dehydrated," Clara said grimly, checking the boy's vital signs as he lay in the infirmary bed. After casting a spell from one of her Runes on the boy he looked _much_ better, but he still looked terrible. "Judging from his appearance, I don't need to guess where he came from."

"Then he's from Agameru," Bearyl said, folding his arms over his chest as he stood at the foot of the bed. "And once again, you've defied my orders." He glared at Daunte.

"Well, technically there is no longer an Agameru so Daunte didn't defy your orders," Caesar spoke from Bearyl's right. "We should hear the boy out."

"Really, we should let him rest—" Clara protested.

"Wake him up," Bearyl commanded. "He came here for a reason and he will tell us now what it is."

Clara was trembling with visible fury, but said no word of protest as she produced a small bottle of smelling salts from a drawer. She gently waved it under the boy's nose, and boy awoke with a start, violet-colored eyes going wide. "W-What—!"

"Your name," Bearyl said, glaring at the boy. "Tell it to me now."

The boy looked at everyone with confusion. Daunte wanted to reassure him that he was safe and that everything would be all right, but he wasn't entirely certain of the truth of such reassurances. So instead he said, "Don't move around so much."

"Your name, boy," Bearyl barked at him. "Who are you and why have you come here?!"

"I-I must speak to Lord Bearyl Lutis," the boy stammered, struggling to sit up. "I must speak to him!"

"I'm standing right in front of you. Or do your eyes not work?" Bearyl leaned over the bed. "I won't ask again. Who are you, and why are you here?"

"A-Ah, my name is Zander and I'm from Agameru. I-I was sent here by Lord Lorik—"

"So Lord Lorik lived!" Allise gasped, pressing a hand over her heart. "What a relief!"

But Zander shook his head. His expression became haunted and full of sorrow. "W-We…there's barely twenty of us left from Agameru. My p-parents were—" tears quickly filled his eyes but he furiously shoo them off and pushed back the covers. "L-Lord Bearyl." He moved into a kneeling position and bowed full kowtow before the Liberation Army leader. "My Lord, I'm here on behalf of Lord Lorik. He wishes to extend to you his deepest apologies for his disrespect of your position. Lord Lorik has told me that he would anything that you ask, and even offers you his life, if you would give us refuge."

Daunte looked between Bearyl and Zander. Bearyl's face was unmoving, and it was difficult to tell how the leader would react to Zander's words. Caesar leaned forward and quickly whispered to Bearyl. Daunte heard nothing that Caesar said, but Bearyl nodded curtly to his words. Daunte breathed out a sigh of relief. _He's going to help the people of Agameru. Good._

Bearyl stepped closer to the bed. "I'm not impressed with Lorik Varra sending a child as a means to gain sympathy from me and to appease me."

"W-What?" Zander sputtered, quickly looking up. Daunte shot a glance at Caesar, but he stilled when he saw the shock in the strategist's face. "N-No, it's not like that my Lord! I-I'm the most able-bodied—"

"Your leader made the stupid decision to abandon my cause," Bearyl snapped. "And _you_ made the stupid decision to follow him instead of following me. You will get no sympathy from me, boy."

"H-How—" Zander looked at a complete loss for words and wrung his hands. "M-My Lord, it wasn't—it wasn't like that! Agameru was my town, I couldn't simply abandon it!"

"So you followed an idiot who knows nothing of warfare and _real_ politics, and you come here to my castle insulting my intelligence by trying to trick me into letting you all come back." He waved a dismissive hand. "Dr. Clara, finish healing him and then send him on his way."

"Lord Bearyl!" Daunte burst out before he could stop himself.

Bearyl glared at him. "Do you have anything to add, Daunte?"

Daunte opened his mouth to object further, but then he saw Caesar shaking his head at him from behind Bearyl. The strategist's expression spoke more than words could. _"Say no more. It will do no good, and you will be cast out along with this boy."_

The words choked in Daunte's throat, and he found he could say nothing. Zander was looking at him with pleading eyes and Daunte looked away. _W…What can I do? What can I do?_

"My Lord, I must object to your order," Clara said softly, squaring her shoulders. "This boy has been through a terrible ordeal and needs a hot meal and a lot of rest." As the lone doctor of the Army Daunte knew she would have greater sway than Daunte, but she still did not have high enough standing to make any difference.

Sure enough, Bearyl moved to stand toe-to-toe with Clara. "Then use your strongest healing spell on him and send him on his way. This is an order, _soldier_."

"I'm _not_ a soldier," Clara snapped, glaring back at him. "I'm a surgeon, and I must do what I can to save my patients! I won't let you cast out this boy!"

"Then you can leave as well," Bearyl told her curtly. "I have had all that I can stand from insubordination!"

"My Lord!" Allise cried out. "We have many sick and injured here, and Dr. Clara is our only doctor! If we throw her out, who will care for them?"

"Yes, Doctor?" Bearyl asked Clara instead. "Who is going to take care of these patients if you sacrifice yourself for this one insignificant boy?"

Clara looked so angry that her face was turning purple. Daunte was certain she might strike Bearyl in anger. After a moment she spun around and held out her hand to Zander. " _Kindness Rain_."

A rain spell more powerful than _Kindness Drops_ engulfed Zander, and the last of his injuries were healed. Clara stormed away without another word, leaving Zander gaping in bed.

"Like I said," Bearyl said, turning back to Zander. "Go report back to Lorik Varra and tell him that he made his bed so he can lay on it. None of you are welcome here."

"My Lord!" Zander wailed. He scrambled off the bed and grabbed Bearyl by his trench coat. "My Lord, _please_! We have lost everything! We have nothing—no food, barely any weapons! We're completely lost and have nowhere to go! You mustn't abandon us!"

"Then maybe Lorik Varra shouldn't have abandoned me _first_ ," Bearyl snapped, pulling his trench coat free. "You have your message, now _go_."

"Zander." Caesar suddenly knelt down so that he was eye-level with the boy. He forced a smile at him. "Would you mind telling Lord Lorik that we wish to see him in person?"

"Caesar!" Bearyl snapped.

"No." The sorrow had left Zander's face and he stood up. He now looked furious. "You've made your message clear. You're not going to help us. I'll tell my lord exactly what you've told me." He glared at Bearyl. "I won't forget this, sir."

"See that you don't," Bearyl told him, missing the underlining threat in Zander's tone. "One of my soldiers will escort you out." He waved to a soldier, who stepped forward.

Daunte looked between Allise and Caesar, and even Varnaz who had been silent, as Zander was escorted out of the infirmary. "I think it's time we all head off to bed," Bearyl announced. "Varnaz, Allise, and Daunte, so on to bed."

"Yes, my Lord," Varnaz said, saluting. Allise saluted in silence and followed Varnaz out. Daunte however did not salute Bearyl. He stormed out of the infirmary after the other two.

 _I can't believe this. Bearyl really is uncompromising, isn't he?! No wonder Falena didn't want to make an alliance with us?!_

"How _dare_ you speak against me, Caesar?"

Daunte almost closed the door shut, but Bearyl's sudden shout caused him to pause. "You are my strategist! Your support of me is supposed to be unwavering! Yet you undermine me to some punk?! I told him that he was not welcome! That Lorik Varra was not welcome! And yet despite these words that _I_ said, you still extended an invitation to him?! Do you have any idea how this makes me look?!"

There was a long moment of silence. " _Answer me_!" Bearyl yelled. His shout startled several sick and injured soldiers awake.

"My Lord." Daunte stiffened as he heard Caesar's voice. It was calm, but very cold. And very _angry_. "My Lord, I have stood by you through some very perilous times. I have given you nothing but my unconditional support. You in turn have greeted my aid with scorn, hubris, and very _stupid_ decisions. I made a commitment to you and I intend on seeing it through. But…"

"But what?"

"But your costly mistakes have worn me too thin, my Lord. I will give you one—just one—more chance to make this Army work and to humble yourself into being a proper leader. If you don't…"

"If I don't?!"

"…Well if you don't, then I will simply have to take my services elsewhere."

Daunte gasped, and quickly closed the door. He didn't bother waiting to hear Bearyl's reply and hurried away from the infirmary. Caesar was threatening to quit?!

 _Bearyl Lutis has lost allies, and now his most important ally is threatening to leave him. Is this because of what Surya wrote in the letter? With this much turmoil in the Army, I don't know how we're going to recover from this._

* * *

There was no moon in the sky, only a sprinkle of stars. Zander couldn't see where he was going.

Panting heavily, he reached out and stroked his horse's mane. But he couldn't stop the tears from spilling from his eyes and he looked skyward. "W-Wha…" he gulped on the words he tried to formulate. "What am I supposed to do now?"

A loud whistle ripped through the air. Zander turned around and his stomach clenched with fright as he saw the familiar uniforms riding towards him. _No, NO!_

Zander tried to motivate his horse to move faster, but the poor beast was already exhausted from the constantly riding. It could barely maintain a steady gallop before the Theocracy's soldiers were upon them. Zander shrieked as a soldier leaped from his own and horse and tackled off his. He saw stars as they both slammed into the ground.

"Search him! Confiscate any weapons he may have! Find his identification book!"

"He's got a crossbow!" the first soldier shouted, yanking it from Zander's back. "But he doesn't have his identification book on him!"

The lead soldier surveyed Zander as two soldiers pulled him to his feet. "Boy, what is your name? Where is your identification book?"

Zander ducked his head. He knew where his identification book was—in the charred remains of his house. Where _everything_ he owned had been. All he had left were his crossbow and the clothes on his back. "I-I-I don…" he shook his head.

"Your clothes are singed," the leader pointed out. "Were you attacked by a fire spell? Or are you from Agameru?"

Zander flinched, but he kept his mouth shut. Unfortunately he saw in the soldier's expression that he'd guessed his origins. "This boy is from Agameru. In the name of Sheikh Keiran Umed, we hereby place you under arrest."

Zander bit down hard on his lower lip, willing himself not to cry. _How can this get any worse for me?_

* * *

 _Investigations_

 _Secret #1_

 **Name:** Roen

 **Age** : 17

 **From:** Kõrkus, Nagarea

 **Position:** Liberation Army soldier, former Dark Chasm prisoner

 _Secret #2_

As you already know, Roen is one of your best friends. He was sentenced to the Dark Chasm a year before you were, convicted under Original Sin for the Kõrkus Massacre. Over a hundred people lost their lives that day, when Roen's father utilized the power of a Rage Rune to set fire to a Chapel. Roen's father had been part of a radical liberation group called New Dawn, who did not shy away from collateral damage so long as their message got out. New Dawn was crushed into oblivion two years ago, but unfortunately their actions have caused many in Nagarea to believe the Liberation Army is no better.

 _Secret #3_

Roen is deeply religious and believed he needed to be punished for what his father did. He still believes he needs to be punished, and part of him feels guilty he is out free when the other children of the Dark Chasm are not free. Despite your telling him the truth about Original Sin, he is convinced of his guilt and feels he must atone. He reminds me strongly of people that I know personally. Speaking from experience I can tell you that simply telling him he's not guilty won't help him. You must give him his full support and don't make him feel worthless or guilty. With time, he should feel right enough with himself to forgive himself.

 _Secret #4_

Roen has grown fond of the Dragon Horse's from Falena. He's a little embarrassed to admit it because of how the Nagarean Faith teaches that they are demonic, but apparently he'd asked Prince Surya in his letter to send him a Dragon Horse egg. Or at least that's what I overheard from Caesar and Gizli when they were reassembling his letter. They got a good laugh out of it because Prince Surya had to refuse him. Next time you go to Falena, why not take Roen with you? I'm sure he would enjoy seeing the Dragon Horse's again.


	20. Chapter Two: Part Seven

I got a flu shot two weeks ago and suffered a bad allergic reaction. Fun times. Anyways, I apologize for the long delay in this and I hope you enjoy this chapter.

* * *

Part Seven

 _Four days later…_

"So, this is what I found," Oboro said, handing Daunte a list. "Based on the investigating I did, you should be able to find suitable recruits in the northeast portion of Winter Hill and in K'alak'i Patieba."

"K'alak'i Patieba?" Daunte asked, looking up. "Does this mean Tidur is willing to join us now?"

"Why not pay the town a visit and see? Also…" Oboro leaned across his desk slightly. "There have been rumblings from the Dark Chasm. I couldn't get close enough to find any more details, but I think we should look into it."

"We should be there anyways, liberating the Dark Chasm," Daunte said harshly. He shook his head. "Oboro, would you mind doing me another favor?"

"Certainly, Daunte."

"I want to know if Zander is okay. He undoubtedly met up with the other survivors of Agameru, but would you mind looking for him?"

"Well, truth be told Lord Caesar already asked me to find him and thus far I've had no luck. But I will certainly give it another try."

"Thank you. Let me—" Daunte reached into his pocket for some bits, but Oboro shook his head at him. "There's no need, Daunte. Lord Caesar already paid me for the task so I intend on seeing it through."

"A-All right."

"Oh, there you are Daunte." A soldier suddenly came into Oboro's office. "Lord Bearyl has summoned you."

Daunte looked at the soldier with surprise before glancing back at Oboro. "I-I'll talk with you later," he said, bowing slightly.

Oboro nodded, smiling in his strange way. "Good luck."

Daunte followed the soldier out of Oboro's office and upstairs towards the war room. He almost wished that Felicity and Roen were with him so he wouldn't have to face Bearyl Lutis by himself, as they had returned from their mission just yesterday. But he tried to remain calm as he was announced into the war room.

"Ah, there you are," Bearyl greeted him. At least Bearyl didn't look angry with him but he also didn't look inviting. Behind him Varnaz remained at the table, but Caesar came down to join Bearyl in greeting Daunte. "I'm lifting your suspension, Daunte."

Daunte was surprised. _So soon? I was suspended for much longer for helping the Falenan royal family!_

The surprise must have been clear on his face, because Bearyl then said, "We need every man we can get. You're no use to us if you're just sitting around here doing nothing."

"T-Thank you, my Lord," Daunte said, bowing.

"I'm sending you on another recruitment quest," Bearyl told him, folding his arms over his chest. "Gunther has told me you have quite the power of persuasion, so I'd like to see that be put to good use."

Daunte nodded eagerly. "I understand, sir." _This will allow me to go and look for Zander myself!_

"But I want you to bring back some _actual_ recruits this time," Bearyl told him sharply. "People who can actually fight, Daunte. I already have enough stragglers in my Army, I don't need any more."

Daunte snapped his teeth in irritation. He'd brought back two merchants on his last recruitment quest, and Bearyl had been pleased with that fact. In private, at least. In public he had no problem emasculating Daunte for not bringing back anyone "useful".

"Having soldiers is always useful for an army, my Lord," Caesar spoke behind Bearyl. "But there is always more to an army than that."

"I'm well aware of that, Caesar." Bearyl looked at Daunte. "Do you understand your orders?"

"Y-Yes, my Lord." Daunte hesitated for a moment before he gathered his nerve to speak. "I—"

"I already know what you're going to say Daunte, and I'll give you the same answer I've given you before; we don't have the manpower to liberate the Dark Chasm." Bearyl turned and headed back to the table.

Daunte's breath hitched, and he frowned deeply. "M-My Lord, there are over three hundred children in the Dark Chasm! I-If you're worried about your numbers, then they can help you!"

"It's too risky Daunte, and would be impractical at this time to pursue. Besides." Bearyl adjusted a figurine on the map. "I have no need for a motley crew of broken teenagers who can barely stand."

Daunte saw red, and almost advanced upon Bearyl in his fury. But a shadow fell over him blocking his path. "You have your orders, soldier, so be on your way."

Daunte glared at Varnaz, but his anger slowly cooled. Varnaz was glaring at him, but the Lieutenant General had a guarded distance from Daunte. After a moment he turned his back on Daunte and joined Bearyl at the table.

"Allow me to help you assemble your group, Daunte." Caesar spoke in low and calming tone as he approached him. He took Daunte by the arm and led him away. "With everything that happened at Agameru, discretion is the best option." He suddenly leaned in close to Daunte to whisper, "Let it go. It won't be much longer."

Daunte looked at Caesar with shock, but the strategist greeted him with his usual lazy smile. "So, who would you like to bring with you this time?"

Daunte opened his mouth but then clicked it shut. He heard that right, didn't he? What did Caesar mean?

" _It won't be much longer."_

But he knew there was no use asking him in front of Bearyl and Varnaz, so he swallowed thickly and said, "I-I would like Roen, Felicity, Gunther, Allise, and Jantu—"

"I can't spare Jantu this time," Bearyl called over to them. "He's going to be running some drills with the soldiers. Choose someone else."

Daunte didn't know who else to choose. Cairoh and Gusoku weren't fighters, and last he checked neither was Liron. Maybe this was what Bearyl meant about recruiting fighters?

"Ah…" Daunte rubbed his hair awkwardly. "T-Then, it will be just the five of us this time."

"All right, I'll go ahead and summon them here. But be careful while out there, okay?"

Daunte nodded jerkily. "T-Thank you."

* * *

"So it's just going to be us five?" Allise asked, stretching her arms over head. "We should be careful, then."

"C-Could we stop by Agameru?" Felicity said.

"I know how you feel, but there's no point in going there," Gunther said grimly. "Our scouts said that there's nothing left of that hamlet but scorched earth and corpses. Apparently the Sheikh has people watching the area to see if anyone comes back. We'd be doing more harm than good by going there."

"...I see." Felicity's shoulders drooped in disappointment.

"I'm sure we'll still hear some news on the road," Roen said.

"Before we leave, I would like to speak with Jantu," Daunte said. "I would like to do some training."

"Now that you mention it, I could use some training myself," Roen admitted. "I would like to develop my defense skills a bit."

"I'll see if Jantu can raise my technique a little higher," Felicity said. "Having the Kite Rune has helped my accuracy considerably, but there's always room for improvement."

"While we're on the road, we should look for a magic trainer," Allise said as they headed downstairs. "Having a combat trainer is very useful sure, but those of us who use magic need to be able to develop our magic skills."

"Magic trainer?" Daunte asked.

"Jantu has experience as a combat trainer, which is why he can train us to improve our physical skills," Gunther said. "However he cannot train anyone with magical affinity. We would need someone with enough experience in magic to train magic users in improving their spellcasting."

"The _incantation_ skill for example allows you to call forth a spell from your rune faster," Allise added. "As of right now my incantation level is around 'C+'. If we get a magic trainer I'll be able to use my Pale Gate Rune quicker."

"I'll definitely keep that in mind," Daunte said. He glanced down at his True Rune. "I'd like to be able to develop my magic skills to properly use this."

"There's trainers in the cities too right?" Roen asked.

"Yes, but having a trainer exclusive to your Army ensures your skills are being properly honed," Gunther said.

"Ah!" Jantu greeted them as they approached. "I'd heard the five of you are heading out on mission. Forgive me for not being able to join you."

"It's all right," Daunte told him. "We were just wondering if you could develop some of our skills a bit?"

"You've been focusing a great deal on agility and stamina," Jantu said. "I can train you to raise your agility to grade 'B', but as for your stamina I can only raise it to a 'C' at this time. In order to raise either any higher I require some training books."

"Training books?" Felicity asked.

"Unfortunately I've not fully mastered the art of combat training," Jantu told them. "With the right training books however, I'll be able to increase my own skills in the field."

"Then we'll be on the lookout for such books," Daunte said.

Roughly a half-hour later they set off from the headquarters with much more polished skills under their belts. Except…

"Daunte, you've been focusing primarily on your agility and stamina," Allise said. "While those are good traits for a boy your size, you should also try developing other areas of combat training. Also, you might want to converse some of your "points", so to speak, for a magic trainer as well."

"I think I know why Daunte is focusing on agility and stamina," Gunther said smugly. He grinned toothily at Daunte. "Are we going to _Baltas_ first?"

"Good grief," Allise huffed, rolling her eyes.

"I would actually like to go to K'alak'i Patieba first," Daunte said over his shoulder. "Oboro told me I could find potential recruits there."

"Did he mean Ms. Tidur and her daughters?" Felicity asked hopefully.

"He didn't say for certain, but I hope so too. He also said I could find a recruit in the northeastern part of Winter Hill."

"That's awfully vague," Allise said. "Doesn't he realize how many kilometers Winter Hill covers?"

"We might as well check in that region first and then head to K'alak'i Patieba," Roen said. "With any luck we'll find the recruit there on the first try, but if not we can look again on our way back."

"That's a very fair point." Allise smiled at Daunte. "So, we'll cross through Winter Hill and hopefully find the potential recruit, and then arrive in K'alak'i Patieba. After that we'll head to Baltas, and cross back through Winter Hill if we didn't find our potential recruit in the first go."

"Well then let's head out," Gunther said. He slid an arm around Allise's shoulders. "Don't worry, my Lady, I will protect you."

Allise casually shrugged his arm off. "I can take care of myself, thank you."

"Hopefully we don't get yelled at for _these_ recruits," Roen grumbled.

* * *

The group searched the northeastern section of Winter Hill for three straight days for the recruit Oboro had mentioned. Unfortunately Oboro's "hints" had been very vague about the individual's whereabouts. Daunte felt foolish for not asking Oboro for more information—like what their recruit looked like, or what even their _gender_ was.

 _I'm not very good at this, am I?_

Once the three days were up they decided to give up and head to K'alak'i Patieba. Their supplies had diminished during that time and they were all exhausted. Having just the five of them was also an adjustment. However they _did_ benefit from running around fighting monsters in Winter Hill. Daunte himself was certain he build up enough skill "points" to increase his agility and stamina even more.

 _Hopefully it's enough to keep up with Desiree. She might be a dancer, but she moves very quickly. If she knows how to fight we could certainly use someone quick on their feet._

As they neared K'alak'i Patieba however, Daunte's eyes once again rove the horizon to the east. His chest tightened, and without realizing it his feet started guiding him in that direction. "Daunte, wait!" Felicity called after him. "Where are you doing?"

Daunte stilled in his tracks. He squinted at the horizon, seeing a dark hilly-shape amidst the Rocky Plains. "…That's the Dark Chasm," he said softly.

"Oh," Felicity said, her tone going quiet as she followed his gaze.

Roen came over to stand at Daunte's right. "It's still surreal, isn't it? Sometimes I feel like I'm back there. I-I mean, I deserved the punishment but—"

" _Nobody_ deserves such a punishment," Allise said softly, her fingers curling tight around her arms. Daunte remembered that she'd also been sentenced to the Dark Chasm, though her sentence had been significantly _shorter_ than theirs, but her experience couldn't have been any better.

"Guys, I know what you're thinking, and I know I will never be able to relate to what any of you suffered there," Gunther said behind them. His tone was soft, very coaxing. "But the five of us can't simply storm the Dark Chasm. We're grossly outnumbered, and even if we succeeded in killing a few guards there would still be more where they came from. And Sheikh Nuori would surely bring her forces down here from her Garrison to restore order. And _then_ what do you think would happen to the children there?"

A shrill scream suddenly ripped through the air, causing all five of them to flinch. The sound was muted, as though it had crossed a great distance. It had undoubtedly come from the Dark Chasm.

"Let's go to K'alak'i Patieba," Gunther pleaded with them. "We won't help anything if we die like this."

"…Yes," Allise said finally, turning away. "We need to think rationally. We'll liberate the Dark Chasm when we have a sufficient enough Army for it."

" _I have no need for a motley crew of broken teenagers who can barely stand."_

Daunte hadn't told anyone what Bearyl had said, but he could guess enough from their leader's words that even if they _did_ have sufficient forces to liberate the Dark Chasm that the Liberation Army leader would _not_ do so.

 _I'll get them out of there. I wish I could do it now, but I WILL get them out of there!_

It was midday when they arrived in K'alak'i Patieba. The small town was still bustling with activity, still oblivious to the sheer hell occurring just kilometers away. They walked past Kin's trade stall—who was still complaining about the high price of rice—but Daunte also noticed that the gossip surrounding them had a…surprising topic.

"Everyone was killed? Even the children?"

"They allied with terrorists—"

"How could the Sheikh kill _children_?! Original Sin dictates that they can work off the sin in their bodies! How could he deny them that chance to redeem themselves?!"

"Lorik Varra is a damned fool—"

"—not fair that _he_ is alive when so many of his people died!"

"—should've been deposed long ago."

They found the combat trainer in town, who was able to raise Daunte's skills to exactly where he needed them. _Good. Now I can try and approach Desiree with her dancing._

Roen went to the magic trainer however to improve his skills with his Fire Rune, as did Allise. Gunther and Felicity stayed with Daunte however to improve their combat skills. Daunte wanted to better his magic skills as well, but found he had insufficient amount of "points" to do so.

 _Well, I'll just have to keep training and building my points._

"Oh!" Felicity gasped. She pointed to a pair sitting at a table at an outdoor café. "Aren't they—?"

Daunte followed her gaze and quickly snapped to attention. He rushed over to the couple sitting at the table. "Nash! Sierra!"

"Yo," Nash said cheerfully, waving.

"You guys are still here?" Gunther asked with confusion. "I would've thought you would return to Harmonia after Lord Bearyl kicked you out!"

"Well, my mission is not yet completed," Nash laughed forcefully, rubbing a hand through his blonde hair awkwardly. "I can't just show up empty-handed after all this. _Again_."

"In addition, there are no ships leaving the country," Sierra said brusquely, folding her hands on the table. Daunte noticed that both Nash and Sierra had a cup of teas, and a plate of teacakes, but neither had been touched. Gunther casually reached out and took a cake. "The Theocracy banned travel after the fiasco with the Falenans. So alas, we are _stuck_ here until this damned war is over." She looked at Daunte. "Either when you win, or when you are crushed and all of you are summarily executed."

"You're certainly cheerful," Roen said sarcastically.

Nash leaned forward across the table. He was no longer smiling and looked completely serious. "I hope the five of you realize you're on a sinking ship."

"Is that so?" Allise said. There was a slight challenge to her tone.

"It couldn't have escaped your notice. The populous of Nagarea doesn't exactly have a high opinion of your Army, plus you soldiers deserting _daily_. You leader of prideful and narrow-minded, completely incapable of accepting constructive criticism and completely incapable of seeing the bigger picture."

"Well, you certainly speak your mind," Gunther said.

"What he saying is that you're not going to win this war," Sierra told them bluntly. "With your low morale, _abysmal_ public opinion rating, and a self-involved leader, I'm actually surprised that you've all lasted this long."

Daunte swallowed thickly. He didn't like being told that they weren't going to succeed. He wanted to make things better for Nagarea, and he wanted to protect Arin. But things…certainly weren't looking promising.

"So for the time being we'll be wandering around here," Nash told them. "I hope for your guy's sake that you'll be successful."

"They'll only be successful if they remove that idiot from command," Sierra grumbled.

"We should be on our way," Allise said. "I'm glad you two are still in good health."

"Thank you," Nash told her.

Daunte noticed that neither Gunther nor Allise said anything to defend Bearyl and casually walked away. He hesitated for a moment before addressing the couple. "Take care of yourselves."

"My offer still stands," Nash told him. "It won't help anyone if you get hurt—or end up dead."

"What offer?" Roen wondered.

"I appreciate the offer, but my answer is still no," Daunte told Nash.

"All right," Nash said, shrugging. "I'm certain we'll see you guys around."

"What did he offer you?" Felicity asked Daunte after they walked away.

"He wants me to move to Harmonia," Daunte said. "Where I'm pretty sure the government will use and my True Rune as they see fit until they have no more use for me."

"Maybe we shouldn't go near them anymore?" Roen said, looking over his shoulder nervously. "If he's trying to get you to up and leave like that."

Daunte shrugged. "I'm not interested, and he's only following orders. It's fine."

"Guys!"

Their heads snapped up at Allise's call. They hurried over to where Gunther and Allise were standing. Daunte recognized the building before them as Tidur's inn, but the state of the building caused him to freeze in his tracks.

The front door was still hanging on its hinges, but it was broken clean in half. Every single window they could see on both the first and second floor was broken, and the side of the building was dented deeply. It almost looked like somebody had driven a heavy cart into it.

"W-What is this?!" Felicity gasped in horror. "Who did this to them?" all around them, the citizens of K'alak'i Patieba went about their business as though nothing was out of the ordinary.

They carefully moved inside. There was muddy footprints on the floorboards and scorch marks on the walls. The front desk had caved in down the center. "Ms. Tidur?" Daunte called out. There was no response. He craned his neck and glanced down the hall. From what he saw in the hallways and in each room, not one piece of furniture had been spared. Splintered wood and broken plates littered the floor. He looked down the other length of hall and froze. There was a thick handprint smeared on the floor. It was dark brown, with a tinge of red. It looked like…

"Ms. Tidur!" Daunte shouted frantically.

"Who is it?" came the call from down the hall.

Daunte nearly collapsed in relief. They ran down the hall until they found themselves in a small bedroom. It was most likely Tidur's bedroom. The woman in question was folding clothes into a suitcase, and Ciana was idly sitting on the broken bed. The room was also in shambles and the windows were broken. Tidur forced a smile at them as they came in. "Oh, hello. It's been a while. How have you all been?"

"Ms. Tidur, what happened?!" Felicity exclaimed. "A-Are the three of you all right?"

"There was a bloody handprint on the wall!" Roen said, looking at each of them closely.

"We were not harmed," Tidur reassured them. "This all happened just last night. That handprint was most likely caused by one of the people who cut themselves smashing our windows. It's no longer safe for us to be here, so we're packing what we can and will be departing shortly."

"…Tidur," Daunte said at length. He walked around the bed to stand in front of her. "T-They found out, didn't they? That you gave us refuge and that we stopped by here to speak with you?"

Tidur shook her head. "Actually, that…has nothing to do with this."

"It's not?" Roen asked. "But then _why_ would they do this to you?"

"It's because of my father," Ciana said bluntly.

"Ciana!" Tidur reprimanded her in a soft voice, quickly standing up.

Everyone turned to gape at Ciana, but the little girl simply shrugged. "We all heard what Papa did to Agameru. Some people felt like they deserved it, but most people here are very angry about it. They thought Papa went too far, and—"

"—and word got out that I was his estranged wife," Tidur confessed softly. She tossed the veil she'd been folding haphazardly into her suitcase. "And well…needless to say they blame us as much as they blame my—the Sheikh for what happened in Agameru."

"That's outrageous!" Gunther snapped. "How are any of you responsible for what that bastard did?!"

" _Please_ don't use such language in front of my children!" Tidur snapped, hurriedly covering Ciana's ears. "People act irrationally when they're upset, but—"

"This _is_ all Dad's fault!" the group jumped and turned to see Esther standing in the doorway. She looked furious and was on the verge of tears. "O-Or no—that's not my father! I don't know _who_ that man is, but he's not Dad! He's a monster wearing his skin!"

"Esther." Tidur raced to her oldest daughter's side and tried to soothe her. "Please don't be upset—"

"Why, Mom?! Why can't we ever escape him?! We're on the other side of the country, but every evil thing he does keeps following us! I just don't understand, Mom!"

"Esther—"

"What happened to him?!" Esther was becoming more and more hysterical as the seconds ticked by. "Why is he like this, Mom?! He wasn't always like this! We used to have tea parties together, and he used to laugh and be _happy_! He used to—" she furiously shook her head. "H-He didn't ever…I don't understand why he's acting this way now!"

Daunte couldn't conceive of the idea of a monster like Sloan Faakhir participating in _tea parties_ with his daughter. It didn't seem possible. He'd seen Sloan's brutality, both in the present and in Tidur's memories. A man so… _vicious_ wouldn't play girlish games with his daughter, would he?

 _But the Sheikh also saved Tidur from an arranged marriage when they were younger. This is all so strange…who is the real Sloan Faakhir? The monstrous bastard who abused his family and slaughtered an entire hamlet? Or the brave young man who fought a grown adult for Tidur's hand, and who apparently had tea parties with Esther?_

But…But it ultimately didn't matter _why_ Sloan had these two sides to him. His hands were still stained with the blood of the innocent people of Agameru. Nothing would ever change that.

"I was thinking of going up into Sheikh Umed's provinces," Tidur said. She continued folding clothes and setting them in her suitcase. "He's an honorable man who I'm certain would ensure we wouldn't be harassed."

"Sheikh Umed helped Dad reclaim his Garrison," Esther pointed out. "What's to stop him from turning us over to Dad?"

Tidur sighed shortly and straightened. "We don't have many other options, Esther. Sheikh Nuori doesn't have the political skill to protect us, and I would never set foot inside of Sheikh Hale's provinces! Ah." She forced a smile at Allise. "No offense, Lady Allise."

"None taken," Allise said. "I have no association with that man anymore. But while Sheikh Umed may give you protection, he may also hand you back over to your husband if he asks for you."

Tidur snorted humorlessly. "That will not happen."

"You don't know that," Gunther said. "Miss, it's not safe for you to stay here, but you cannot trust that Sheikh Umed's honor will protect you!"

"Don't you think I don't know that?!" Tidur burst out with frustration. She wrung a hand through her hair. "I…I don't understand any of this. He isn't…he's not the man I fell in love with. I know that and that's why I left him. I needed to protect myself, and I needed to protect my daughters. But how am I supposed to do that? I can't fight—the whole state of my inn is proof of that! But what else am I supposed to do?! I…" she trembled and slowly sat down. "I-I even tried to reach out to my parents, but they didn't…" she shook her head furiously. "I don't know what to do…"

"Mom," Esther breathed. Seeing her mother so distressed was enough to calm her down and she quickly rushed to give Tidur a hug. "I'm sorry, Mom! I'm sorry I keep complaining! I don't mean to be a bother, I swear!"

"Sweetheart, you're not a bother. Don't ever say that!"

Ciana said nothing, and didn't visibly react to Esther and Tidur's distress. After a moment she climbed off the broken bed and joined her mother and sister in a group hug.

Daunte looked at the others, and saw the emotional distress in their faces. He calmly approached the family and knelt down. "Come with me."

"Eh?" Tidur looked up. Her beautiful eyes were bloodshot. "Come with you where? What do you mean?"

"Join the Liberation Army," Daunte said. "They will protect you from the Sheikh's wrath."

"B-But I told that I'm not a soldier. And my daughters—"

"All of you are welcome," Daunte reassured her. "You can help us get organized, Tidur. A-And Esther." He looked at the teenaged girl. "You have a real talent for decorating windows. You could design something special for us at the castle."

"And me?" Ciana asked him. "What can I do?"

"Uh…" Daunte faltered, not knowing how to tell such a small child her worth in an Army. He finally settled with, "Just be _you_ , Ciana. That's all that matters."

Tidur dabbed at her eyes with the edge of her veil and slowly stood up. "It's not safe for us to be here. And truthfully, I don't know if we'll be safe under Sheikh Umed's watch. I-I don't know what sort of value I could have for the Liberation Army, but if you would have me I will gladly join."

Esther stood up as well. "I know what you people are, and that you do terrible things. B-But he…my father did terrible things, and with the blessing of the Theocracy. I will never support a government that would authorize such brutality. You will have my support as well."

"Mine too," Ciana said bluntly. The child did not mince words.

"Excellent!" Gunther cheered. "Three recruits at once! Good job, Daunte!"

"Would you mind waiting while we finish packing?" Tidur asked them. "We would like to accompany your group. It wouldn't be safe for the three of us to travel alone."

"I agree," Allise said, looking to Daunte.

Daunte nodded. "Take as much time as you need. We're going to Baltas next, and then we're going to go to Winter Hill, so I hope you don't mind being on the road for such a long period of time."

Tidur smiled at them. "I have a wagon, so we'll follow behind you closely."

* * *

Tidur and her daughters gathered what they could salvage and loaded it into a wagon. There was only enough room on the seat for the three of them, but Daunte was fine with that. As they departed K'alak'i Patieba he noticed that Nash and Sierra were no longer around. _They must've left before us._

Despite their suddenly large entourage, the residents of K'alak'i Patieba didn't give them a second glance. Daunte assumed they were happy to see the Sheikh's family leave that they didn't care _who_ they left with. But Tidur and her daughters were in noticeably higher spirits after leaving their broken inn behind. Daunte felt terrible for them because they'd obviously invested a lot of money and care into that small business, only for it to be completely destroyed. They didn't deserve that.

 _I will make sure they will be taken care of at headquarters._ But Daunte himself wasn't sure how he would keep that promise.

They crossed north through the Rocky Plains and on towards Baltas. The trip reminded Daunte strongly of when he'd left the Dark Chasm with Felicity, Roen, and Surya and it once again made him miss his friend. He hoped he would be able to see Surya one day, but it didn't seem likely.

 _Just don't think about it. Just focus on the present._

They reached Baltas almost two days later. Within the outskirts of the town Tidur declared that her daughters and she would remain behind, out of sight with their wagon. "I might be recognized here. Sloan brought here once for a wedding anniversary. The townsfolk were so happy about our arrival that they greeted us with a parade."

Daunte was once again puzzled by these…oddly _human_ gestures Sloan displayed when he was such a horrific monster, but he said nothing about it and nodded. "We won't be too long."

"I wouldn't worry. We're too close to a human settlement to be ambushed by monsters."

"I'm going to take a nap," Esther declared, climbing into the back of the wagon. Ciana was busying herself in the wagon seat playing Cat's Cradle with red string.

They headed into town, letting the security check their forged identification books, and turned their attention towards the tavern. "So, you're going to try out-dancing that feisty beauty in there?" Gunther said, rubbing his hands. Allise scoffed and rolled her eyes.

"I don't think I can out-dance her," Daunte said. "But hopefully I can keep up with her for once."

"Granted if she chooses you for dancing again," Roen teased him.

"Move along!"

Daunte looked over his shoulder. He stiffened as he saw a soldier knock down a man covered in a tanned cloak. The man in the cloak actually looked _taller_ than the soldier, but did nothing to defend himself as he tumbled into the dirt. The soldier laughed obnoxiously at the fallen man and walked away.

Daunte hurried over to the man and knelt down beside him. The man's hood fell into his face, making it impossible for Daunte to see anything but the man's five o'clock shadow. But he saw that the man's clothes were tattered. "Are you all right, sir?" he asked him.

"I'm fine," the man responded. His voice was raspy, but his tone was soft. Daunte and Gunther helped the man to his feet and the man shook the dirt off his clothes. "Thank you for your concern, sir."

Daunte felt awkward to have this obviously older man defer to him, but he forced a smile. "I-Is there anything I can do for you?"

"I haven't slept in a bed in over a month," the man said softly. His gloved hands pulled his tattered cloak tighter around himself. "If you can assist me with that, I would be grateful to you."

Daunte knew that the man was asking him to pay for a night at the inn. He didn't know the rates at the inn, but he wanted to help the man in some way. So he smiled and reached for the man's arm. "I'd be happy to. Let's go to the inn and I'll pay for you to have a room."

His arm gently landed upon the man's forearm, and Daunte was shocked to feel it _thick_ underneath his touch. His hand squeezed very slightly, and his vision suddenly blurred. He blinked rapidly as bile surged into his throat. _W-What? What? What is this?_

"Daunte?" Felicity asked with concern.

"L-Let's go to the inn," Daunte stammered, forcing the nausea down. He didn't know what suddenly brought this on. He didn't know this man—he _knew_ that he didn't know this man. But touching the man invoked something very uncomfortable inside him.

 _I-I'll hurry and get him to the inn._

The innkeeper wasn't happy with the man's disheveled state, but stated the nightly rate as 75 bits. Daunte debated upon how many night's he should pay for the man, as the innkeeper stated he could pay for up to a week. When the man stated he would move on within three days, Daunte paid the innkeeper 300 bits. He wanted to make sure the man was well-rested and wouldn't feel pressure to leave quickly.

"I'm grateful to you for this," the man told him. "What is your name?"

"Daunte," Daunte told him.

"That's a good name. I…do not have a name. Or if I do, I don't remember it. I've been called _'La'Ahad'_ , so you can call me that too. I can't thank you enough for this."

"…La'Ahad?" Daunte tested the name. "You don't need to thank me. Just take care of yourself."

La'Ahad nodded and followed the innkeeper up the stairs towards his room.

"That was so kind of you, Daunte," Allise said. Her tone wavered, as though she was genuinely touched.

"All I did was pay for his inn room," Daunte said defensively. "I-I mean, I could've done more for him, like get him a new pair of clothes or some food or—"

"But you did _something_ for him," Felicity said. "And you did it without being told to and without expecting anything in return. It's very admirable."

"I think Lord Bearyl _really_ needs to give you a promotion," Gunther said as they left the inn. "Imagine the morale boost our soldiers would have knowing a kid like you—who has virtually _nothing_ —made a gesture of good-will for a complete stranger."

It felt odd to Daunte that they gave him so much praise for doing something so simple for someone who needed even _more_ than someone to pay for their inn room, but he said nothing more about it. "L…Let's go to the tavern."

As luck would have it, their timing was perfect because the familiar music was building up the moment they crossed the threshold. The patrons rushed towards the stage and Daunte found his shoulders being seized from behind. "Hurry, before she chooses someone else!" Gunther was shouting over the cheers, pushing Daunte straight towards the stage.

Desiree was already sauntering onstage by the time they pushed enough people aside for Daunte to get into view. She danced in her familiar elaborate fashion, and her agility and stamina made Daunte feel woefully inadequate. _Oh Nagar, I'm not ready! I'll never be able to keep up with her!_

Desiree spun around gracefully before she suddenly pointed…at Daunte. "You!"

"Aw dammit, not again!" a patron wailed in obvious heartbreak.

"Get a room, you two!" another shouted.

Gunther was already hoisting Daunte onto the stage, and Roen hurried over to help as Desiree moved over to pull Daunte towards her. "Ready to show me how much you've improved?" she whispered to him.

Daunte wondered how on earth Desiree could've known he'd been trying to develop his agility and stamina to match hers, but instead he nodded jerkily. "Y-Yes."

Even with the extra training, the added skill, Desiree was still _very_ quick on her feet. And there was the simple sad fact that Daunte had _no idea_ how to dance. He tried to keep up with her but looked like a flailing idiot compared to her natural grace. It made him feel even more foolish than the other times where he stood up onstage gawking at her.

 _What was I thinking? I don't know what the heck I'm doing!_

It seemed like an eternity, but the song ended. To Daunte's utter shock the entire tavern exploded in cheers. Everyone was clapped, and outside of some lewd shouts nobody was heckling him. He was honestly stunned. _They…They thought I did okay?_

Desiree suddenly grabbed his hand. "Come with me," she said in a playful voice.

Daunte gaped at her, but didn't resist as she pulled him towards the curtain into the backstage area. Several hoots and catcalls followed them.

"That was _incredible_!" Desiree squealed. She threw her arms around Daunte. "It's so refreshing to find someone who works so hard to improve themselves! To what do I owe this honor?"

"Uhhhhhh…" now that he was alone with her and faced with the prospect, Daunte felt nervous. He gently pushed her away and gathered the nerve to continue. "W…Would you be interested in joining me?"

"Joining you?" Desiree asked. "For what?"

Rather than give an impassioned speech, Daunte quickly told about the fact that he was looking to recruit her for the Liberation Army. To his shock, Desiree looked thoughtful about the proposal. "I _have_ noticed that things have gotten much worse in recent years. Disappearances, harsher taxes…it's made so many people miserable, and I dance to make people happy." Desiree smiled at Daunte. "I've seen your dedication, and I know I can rely on you. Very well; I will join the Liberation Army."

Daunte was positively shocked that Desiree was so willing to join him, when all he did to gain her favor was just improve his agility and stamina. But he nodded quickly. "We're honored to have you."

"I'll need to gather my things, but I'll meet you there. Where is your headquarters?"

Daunte gave her directions and she smiled. "Well, then I'll see you there!" she kissed him on the cheek and hurried off.

"There you are!" Gunther laughed when Daunte resurfaced. "How did it go?"

"She agreed to join us," Daunte said.

"Really? Just like that?" Felicity asked disbelievingly.

"We should leave," Allise said abruptly. "Now."

"Why?" Roen asked fearfully. "Is this a trap?"

"Oh no," Allise said cheerfully. "But once these patrons find out we just stole that girl from them, they'll surely kill us."

"You have a point," Gunther said. "Let's leave. Now."

* * *

On the way out of Baltas they stopped by a trading post and bought all the rice they had. Daunte still didn't understand the concept of trading, but he hoped that the sale would help bring the price down at a later time…and make Kin feel less morose.

They didn't see a hair of Desiree after Baltas, but they were confident they would meet the dancer back at headquarters. So they collected Tidur and her family and steered the party back towards Winter Hill to look for that supposed "recruit" that Oboro told them about.

Two days after arriving in Winter Hill, they were still searching.

"What exactly was Oboro talking about when he told us to look here?" Gunther complained, looking at their surroundings and seeing nothing but flat plains for kilometers around them. "Those were pretty vague directions to tell us where a potential recruit was!"

"And yet we followed them," Allise said softly.

"Now, Suna!"

The group jumped at this shout. It belong to the voice of a young lady—possibly a teenager. Gasps and shouts of shock rumbled through the group however as a golden form suddenly rose into the air twelve meters away. The shape was rapidly beating small wings, the 'whooshing' sound filling the air. As the form rose higher, a human shape rose from a kneeling position and held their arms out to the form. "That's it, Suna! You're doing great!"

"I-Is that a _dragon_?!" Roen exclaimed, looking at the others. "Like, a baby dragon?!"

Daunte quickly looked at Gunther and found the older man was already looking at him. Realization had dawned on him as well. "It's them," Gunther said. "The dragon and girl we saw some time ago!"

"How long ago was that?" Allise said.

"After we went to Kõrkus to rescue the princess."

"And you didn't mention this to us at all?!"

"Hey, we _did_ mention it to you! You just didn't believe us!"

"I want to see the dragon," Ciana said suddenly. Without another word she scrambled out of the wagon and ran towards the dragon and the girl, Esther following close behind. Tidur sighed and shook her head before following her daughters.

The rest of the group hurried over to the girl with the dragon. When they got close enough Daunte noted that the blonde-haired girl looked to be around his own age, possibly a year or two older than him. Her hair was short and she was wearing a unique sort of red headband that looked like two dragon wings were growing on either side of her head. She was dressed in yellow armor that didn't seem practical because it showed off too much of her body. The girl didn't notice their approach as her red eyes were focused on Suna, but Daunte noted that her eyes weren't crimson like Sierra's but more of a burgundy color. When the girl grinned, she had a fangy smile and she laughed heartily.

"Fantastic, Suna!" the dragon dropped into her arms and she hugged it tightly. "You're doing so well! Pretty soon you'll be big enough for me to ride you!"

"Excuse us," Daunte called out to her.

The girl shrieked in alarm. Suna immediately reacted to her mistress's shout and roared. But as Suna was still a small dragon, the sound only ripped through the air and was barely powerful enough to stir the wind. The girl let Suna go and readied a spear, while Suna took a protective stance in front of her. "Who are you?! What do you want?!"

"Hold on there, little lady," Gunther said, raising his hands defensively. "We're not here to harm you. We're just interested in your dragon."

"I-Is it real?" Esther asked. Unimpeded by the girl's threatening stance, she knelt down before Suna with Ciana. Within seconds the girls were teasing the small dragon as though it were an oversized puppy.

"Well, I'm not surprised you're interested in Suna," the girl said, her tone suddenly becoming haughty as she lowered her weapon. "Suna has been able to do amazing things that most adult dragons take years to do!"

"I-Is the dragon safe?" Tidur asked, watching her daughters with apprehension. "You've seem to have, ah, domesticated it."

"It's to be expected of Dragon Knights, of course. We train our dragons from the time they hatch, and by the time they grow up they're our loyalist allies. But who are you people?"

Daunte went around introducing everyone, ending with himself. "And who are you, miss?"

"Me?" the girl struck a pose with her spear. "I'm Sharon, daughter of Milia, the commander of Toran Republic's Dragon Knights. Speaking of which, where are the Dragon Knights of Nagarea?"

The group stared at her blankly. "D…Dragon Knights?" Felicity asked softly.

"You know, the fleet who breeds and trains dragons! I've heard all about your Dragon Knights straight from Toran!"

Daunte looked at Gunther. "We have Dragon Knights in Nagarea?"

"There are rumors there was a fleet of Dragon Horse Knights here in Nagarea during the time when the Sindar race settled here," Allise said. "But with the rise of the Nagarist Order…well, you already know what happened to the indigenous dragon horses here. Even so, that was over a thousand years ago."

Sharon's face fell. "Wait. There are no Dragon Knights here in Nagarea? None _at all_?!"

"The only dragons we have are monsters," Roen said. "Otherwise the dragon horses are extinct here."

"Damn it all!" Sharon shouted. She wrung her fists towards the heavens in fury. "I got myself stranded here for _nothing_!"

"Stranded?" Daunte echoed.

"I came here following the rumors! There were so many rumors in Toran that I thought for sure that it was true!" Sharon stomped her feet in frustration. "But then I ran into trouble the minute I got here, and we've been running ever since! And my potch is worthless here, so we've been scavenging for food like animals! And I've been working so _hard_ to better Suna's flying skills so she could fly us home, but she's still too small to carry me! I went through all of this for nothing! Oh, Mom's going to _kill_ me when she sees me!"

The group watch Sharon flail her arms around and scream in anger. Suna watched her mistress in silence, but there was clear distress in Suna's bright eyes.

After a few moments, Daunte coughed awkwardly. "W-Would you like to come with us, then?"

"Huh?" Sharon paused in her flailing and ranting to look at Daunte. "What do you mean?"

"We're members of Nagarea's Liberation Army," Daunte told her. "We're fighting the people who've been after you. We could certainly use the assistance of a Dragon Knight for our Army, and well…you both would have a safe place to stay at our headquarters until you go home."

Sharon lowered her arms to her sides. "What exactly are you guys fighting for? I know nothing of this country or your politics."

"Long story short, an ex-assassins group has taken over the government and has manipulated our religion to enact inhumane and brutal laws to force us into submission," Gunther said. "If you fight with us, you'll be fighting to stop these people."

"Hmmm…" Sharon seemed to give it a lot of thought. She knelt down in front of Suna. "What do you think, Suna? Should we join them?"

"Wait, your answer hinges on what the _dragon_ thinks?!" Roen exclaimed.

"Wait, you can _understand_ dragons?!" Felicity also exclaimed.

Suna responded to her mistress with a series of grunts, ending with a brief yelp. Sharon smiled and picked Suna up into her arms. "Suna trusts you, so _I_ will trust you. From this day forward I, Sharon of the Dragon Knights, hereby pledge my support to your Liberation Army!"

Daunte nodded and shook her hand. "We're off to headquarters now so you're welcome to join us."

"I'd be glad to. It's been such a long time since we've traveled in a group!"

"Good, we got a skilled knight," Gunther muttered to Allise. "I'd like to see his Lordship complain about this!"

"Would you like to go on ahead of us our join the group?" Daunte asked Sharon.

"What do you think? I have no idea how to get to your hideout, so I'm _definitely_ joining you!" Sharon grunted as she lifted Suna a little higher in her arms. "Her range is pretty short, but Suna can breathe fire now so she'll pull her weight too!"

"Wow, really?!" Roen exclaimed. "She can really breathe fire at people?"

Sharon made a face. "Well… _maybe_ her fire is only strong enough to light a camp fire, but she's still pretty tough."

Daunte couldn't help but smile. _I'm bringing back quite a crew this time._

* * *

Indeed, all of headquarters was rumbling over the new recruits when Daunte and the group got back. Tidur took one look at the barracks and quickly set about organizing them, with help from her daughters. Esther had a few complaints about the style of the windows of the headquarters but otherwise worked alongside her family.

There _was_ considerable apprehension within the Army over having the estranged wife of a Sheikh and his daughters as new recruits, but nobody could complain about the quick results they produced just from within twenty-four hours of their arrival. Then there were those who were too busy drooling over Tidur to care about where she came from, or the fact that she was still technically married to a complete psychopath.

Desiree's presence also was a morale-booster, even though the dancer was disappointed by the lack of a stage for her to perform on. But she soaked in the attention she received from the soldiers around her and danced wherever she could.

Sharon on the other hand…people didn't quite know what to make of her. As the Nagarean religion taught that dragon horses were demonic, most didn't know what to think of Suna. But her compliance in the face of her mistress certainly fascinated those around her, and as it would turn out, she wasn't entirely a stranger to everyone in the castle.

"It's certainly a surprise to see you here, Sharon," Caesar greeted her. "Is this the golden dragon that caused a stir?"

"Of course," Sharon told him, ruffling Suna's head. "But what are _you_ doing her Caesar? Last time I was in Gregminster, Apple said you returned to your studies in Harmonia."

"Well, in my experience I've found the best way to learn is to get your hands dirty." Caesar folded his arms over his chest. "Speaking of which, why exactly are _you_ here? Did you run away again?"

"No!" Sharon snapped at him. "I was following a lead about a group of Dragon Knights here in Nagarea! Sadly, it turned out to be nothing more than rumors, but I don't regret coming here!"

Caesar arched an eyebrow at her. "So…Lady Milia sent her one and only child, and a Dragon Knight _Cadet_ , to investigate an unsubstantiated rumor on an _entirely different continent_?"

Sharon flushed deep crimson, and hugged Sun to her chest protectively. "Just mind your own business!"

"Hey, I'm not complaining. You were a formidable fighter during the Second Fire Bringer War, and I'm sure you're even more formidable now with a dragon at your disposal. But since we're already dealing with the Theocracy's Army, the last thing I need is for the Dragon Knights to bring their full wrath down upon us because you ran off again."

"Oh, just go awa—"

"Although, I wouldn't complain if the Dragon Knights threw their support behind us—"

"Just buzz off, Caesar!" Sharon threw a pillow at him.

Daunte observed all of this with some mild amusement. The mood had changed in the castle, and it didn't seem so tense. It felt good that he had a hand in improving morale, however small his contribution was.

He jumped slightly as someone tapped him on the shoulder and he turned around. Oboro was standing there, and he wasn't wearing his usual smile. The anxiety in the older man's face distracted Daunte enough to not dwell on the fact that he hadn't heard Oboro approach. "W-What's wrong?"

"We need to talk," Oboro said tersely. "Lord Caesar, I must have a word with you!"

"Of course," Caesar said, immediately snapping to attention. He left Sharon to fawn over Suna and hurried over to them. "You look so serious, Oboro. I take it the news isn't good?"

"I'll explain everything in Lord Bearyl's presence. We must hurry."

A hard lump quickly formed in Daunte's throat as he hurried up the stairs after Oboro and Caesar. "D-Did…Did you find Zander?"

"I'll explain everything in the war room," Oboro said over his shoulder. "It's best if his Lordship hears about it first and foremost."

"Yes, that would be wise," Caesar said, though his tone sounded bland.

Bearyl was in the war room speaking with Varnaz, Gunther, and Allise when they arrived. "There you are, Caesar," Bearyl greeted them. "We—"

"I have an urgent report, my Lord," Oboro said, thrusting a piece of paper at Bearyl. "I've found Zander."

Bearyl blinked once, and then twice. "Who?"

"The Agameru refugee," Oboro reminded him. There was an underlying dark tone to his voice that made Daunte jump slightly. "I found his location."

"Why should this concern me?" Bearyl gave the report to Caesar and headed back to the war table. "And who gave you the command to look for that boy? I think I've made it _very_ abundantly clear we have no association with that lot anyone."

"Oh, but you _should_ care my Lord," Oboro responded. His tone was lighthearted, but there was still that unexpected dark edge there that instinctively made Daunte nervous. "The boy was arrested by Sheikh Keiran Umed's soldiers and is currently being held at the Sheikh's garrison."

Daunte's stomach twisted up and he looked at Caesar. The strategist did not look surprise, and his carefree smile faded from his face. He looked at Gunther and Allise who both looked shocked and upset, but Varnaz's face was unmoving.

Bearyl looked up from the war table. His face was similarly unmoving. "Well, he can count himself lucky it wasn't Sheikh _Faakhir's_ men who arrested him."

Daunte gaped at his leader. _Does he_ _ **really**_ _not care about what could happen to Zander?!_

"My Lord, we have a precarious situation," Caesar spoke up suddenly. He sauntered up to Bearyl in a leisurely fashion, but his face was deathly serious. "I hope you realize that Zander knows the location of this headquarters. What's to stop the Sheikh from torturing that information out of him?"

Bearyl's head snapped up and his expression quickly filled with alarm. "That…That's a very valid point. That child _does_ know our location, and could easily give it up under duress."

"I do not believe Sheikh Keiran Umed would torture him for information," Allise spoke up. "That is not his style. He is a very honorable man. He would never torture a prisoner for information."

"But Zander could still just as easily give up our location," Gunther pointed out. "Especially with what happened when he came here."

"What are you implying, Gunther?" Bearyl barked at him, advancing on his subordinate.

Gunther, however, stood his ground. "My Lord, you casted that child out in a tactless, cruel manner. I _fully_ believe he would sell us out to save his own skin if for nothing else than payback!"

Bearyl's nostrils flared as he glared straight into Gunther's unflinching face. He looked away then and glared at everyone in the room. No one said a word. Even Varnaz did not come to his best friend's defense.

Daunte himself completely agreed with Gunther. _We're in trouble._

Bearyl walked away from Gunther and rubbed a hand over his face. Then he abruptly turned back around. "Gather the troops. We need to organize and act before the Sheikh does. This will require us to attack his Garrison with everything we have."

"I agree," Caesar said, stepping forward. "If the Sheikh has our location, we'll need to move fast and silence him before he spreads the knowledge. It may also do us some good to rescue Zander from their hold. We can consider it a gesture of good-will towards the people of Agameru."

"That boy will think he's so _clever_ , giving us up," Bearyl snarled, gesturing angrily with his hand. "But I won't give him that satisfaction. I'll show them all exactly why I'm a force to be reckoned with!"

Daunte wondered if Bearyl just filtered words he didn't want to hear. He seemed more fixated on making a statement and proving his might than about the fact that the lives of _everyone_ at headquarters was at risk. And they wouldn't even _be_ in this position if it weren't for Bearyl!

 _Why do I continue to follow this man? If the Sheikh attacks this castle, Arin's life will be in danger. And if the Sheikh finds Tidur and her daughters, he will most likely ship them back to Sloan Faakhir. That eradicated an entire village and killed indiscriminately. What would he do to the family that had to use legality measures to get away from him?_

Daunte didn't want to think about it, but the thought spread through him like poison. _What do I do? Mom…what am I supposed to do?_

* * *

The entire Army was assembled in the front courtyard less than an hour later. Daunte found himself standing between Oboro and Gunther behind Bearyl as their leader looked out over the Liberation Army. Despite there having been no official announcement yet, word still spread regardless and Daunte saw apprehension and fear in the faces of the men and women standing below them.

And in just a handful of faces however…Daunte also saw _derision_ , directly pointedly at Bearyl Lutis. Daunte wondered if these same people similarly blamed Bearyl for their current predicament.

"Soldiers!" Bearyl called out, raising his hands for silence. "It is time we make a stand! Sheikh Keiran Umed has taken an innocent child hostage at his Garrison! The child's name is Zander—a survivor of Agameru! Our corrupt government shows their cruelty and evil with the terror and pain they've inflicted upon this one boy! It wasn't enough to destroy his home, take away his family—no! Now they torture him in mind and body, all for their sick amusement! We cannot allow this to stand!"

Daunte gaped at the back of Bearyl's head. _Wait a minute. We're attacking the Sheikh's Garrison to preempt any attack on us! Yet Lord Bearyl is selling our attack as a_ _ **rescue mission**_ _?! How can he stand there and LIE when he doesn't care about Zander?!_

"There isn't a moment to lose!" Bearyl continued. "While our enemies lie in wait and plot, we will arm ourselves and march upon the Sheikh's Garrison! We will rescue Zander, and take a strategic holding and secure a lasting victory! We will fight, and we will win! For the of this Army, and for the good of our nation!"

The soldiers below cheered, and much of the apprehension and fear left. But Daunte was still gaping at Bearyl, who continued to shout and pump up his forces. _Isn't he going to tell them about the very real threat that Zander might sell us out?! It's not just Zander who's in danger—ALL of us are in danger!_

He looked at the others standing beside him. Both Allise and Gunther wore grim expressions, Varnaz revealed nothing on his face, and Caesar wore his usual lazy smile. Except the smile was twitching violently.

Caesar stepped forward to speak. As was expected of him he only encouraged and supported Bearyl's plans, and the crowd below cheered them on even more. But Daunte didn't pay attention; he looked back towards the castle. He thought of Arin, Tidur and her daughters, and the other recruits he had brought back. He'd brought them here on the pretext that they would bring change and be safe, but…

 _We're going to march upon the Garrison, but he's not acknowledging the fact that this castle may be invaded. Arin is danger—everyone that I recruit are in danger._ _ **I**_ _brought them here, under the command of an irresponsible, egotistical idiot and they might die! What do I do?!_

He turned back around, not hearing Caesar's words of encouragement, and ducked this head. _I…I must fight, then. I must fight with everything I have in this upcoming battle. If we're not successful, then they're going to kill everyone here. I must protect them! My recruits, the untrained civilians, and most importantly Arin! We have to win!_

He clenched his hands into fists at his sides and ducked his head. He squeezed his eyes shut…so he did not notice the glow the Rune of Restoration gave off.

* * *

The cell was dark. Zander could barely make out the cracks in the ceiling.

"I brought you your lunch." It was the same squire who'd brought him his food every day. The other soldiers had called him "Lanny". Lanny propped the tray up on the tray stand that was waist-high in the cell door and gently pushed it in. "You've barely eaten anything since you were brought here. You're going to make yourself sick."

"Why don't you just kill me and be done with it?" Zander demanded, quickly sitting up. "I've already lost everything—there's nothing you can do to me now to break me any further!"

" _We_ didn't attack Agameru," Lanny countered. "You cannot blame us for the actions of you heretics!"

"SHUT UP!" Zander hollered. He yanked his shoe off and threw it at Lanny. But since cell door separated them, the shoe did not reach Lanny and instead hit the food tray. Lanny jumped back at Zander's lunch spilled all over the floor. "Don't you _ever_ call me a heretic! Is that how you _loyal believers_ sleep so well at night, that I deserve everything that's happened to me because you think I'm a heretic?! My parents are dead, I've lost my home, and now I'm here like a caged animal! You have NO IDEA what I've suffered!"

"Lanny, what have I told you about antagonizing our prisoners?"

Lanny snapped to attention and Zander stiffened with fear as Sheikh Keiran Umed came down the stairs and into the small hallway of the prison cells, closely followed by Mihr. Zander knew that this wasn't the same Sheikh who slaughtered his family and friends, but he still trembled with fear when he saw the familiar uniform.

"Y-Yes, sir," Lanny stammered, saluting. "I apologize, sir."

"Please go back to the kitchen and ask the cook to make another lunch for this boy. And you are to tell her _why_ she has to make another lunch."

Lanny went pale in the face but he hastily nodded. "Y-Y-Yes, sir." He took off running up the stairs.

Zander vaguely wondered what sort of person the cook was that she terrified the squire, but Keiran then approached his cell and Zander flinched back. "Young man, you have my condolences for what happened."

Zander gaped at him for a long moment before he sputtered violently. "C-C-C- _Condolences_?! We've lost everything! So many of my people died! You people did this to me!"

"I did not participate in the attack on Agameru," Keiran said softly. "Lorik Varra betrayed our country, but I do not endorse wholescale slaughter of unarmed civilians for the mistakes of one man. It is a disgrace and such actions are dishonorable."

Zander choked out a humorless laugh. "S-So you're saying that the other Sheikh is without honor?!"

"Yes."

Zander was stunned by Keiran's blunt answer and gaped for a moment. Keiran continued. "I have no intention of bringing harm to you, Zander, but as a Sheikh I am compelled to hold you here. And I am compelled to ask you for the whereabouts of your people."

"I have no idea," Zander shot back.

"No, I believe you _do_ know," Keiran said. "But hunting down the people of Agameru is the least of my concerns. My focus is on something far greater: your allies in the Liberation Army."

Zander choked, and suddenly shrieked with laughter. He fell back onto the bed and hugged his sides. His laughter vibrated off the walls, but it was a haunting sound that visibly spooked the guard on duty.

Keiran and Mihr, however, were unmoved. "The Liberation Army surely knows where you are now, but they have sent us no ransom requests. They don't seem to think very highly of you, so I don't see the value in your loyalty to them."

"L-Loyalty?!" Zander spat. The laughter quickly quelled and anger snapped through him. He jumped to his feet. "I have _no_ loyalty to those bastards! They abandoned us to die, and then threw me out when I tried to gain help from them! I begged them for help, but Bearyl Lutis refused me! He doesn't give a damn about me, so why should I give a damn about him?!"

"That's an excellent question," Keiran said. "But since you admitted that you went to the Liberation Army for help, then you also admit you know where their hideout is. Correct?"

Zander stilled. He realized he said too much, and had played right into Keiran's hands. _Is…Is this why he kept me? To press me for information about where the Liberation Army is?_

Zander closed his eyes, but quickly regretted it. Behind the lids he saw the images. Burning houses, dead bodies…the smell of blood and charred wood. Sheikh Sloan Faakhir barking out orders to spare no one, to kill everyone—that's monster unflinching, unfeeling expression as he killed person after person…

And Bearyl Lutis allowed it to happen. And did not care about the aftermath.

"Allow me to make this easier for you," Keiran said. "I was speaking the truth when I told you I don't care where Lorik Varra is, or the other survivors of your hamlet. What matters to me is finding the Liberation Army. If you tell me where they are Zander, then you're free to go. I'll give you a new horse, new clothes, and a pack full of food and supplies. And we won't follow you. How does that sound?"

Zander slowly approached the bars and grabbed hold of them. He looked up into Keiran's face. It was obscured by the hood, but he saw nothing devious in Keiran's dark blue eyes. "Y-You won't follow me?"

"I won't follow you. Do I always keep my vows, Mihr?" Keiran asked the other man.

"Yes, you do," Mihr replied.

"You see?" Keiran looked back at Zander. "It won't bring your family back, but you have my word that my forces will not come after you or anyone from Agameru. Does that sound fair?"

Zander hesitated for a moment, before he nodded. "I-I'll tell you where they are."


	21. Chapter Two: Part Eight

Part Eight

Daunte retrieved the box that had the words _windows set_ on stamped onto the lid. He held it in his arms for a moment before he let out a long sigh. _I should do this now, in case I don't have time later._

"Daunte." Ichirou came up behind him, the child's face full of worry. "Why are you emptying your pockets? You'll come back from this, I know you will!"

Daunte turned around to face him. "Ichirou, does our headquarters have a contingency plan in the event of an invasion?"

"I…believe so," Ichirou answered after a long moment of silence. "B-But it's been months since we ran a full evacuation drill. Do you think the Army will come here?"

"If we don't succeed in this siege, they will _surely_ come here."

"T-Then you should take everything with you!" Ichirou started pulling items off the shelf that Daunte had stored there. "If the Theocracy's Army invades headquarters, they'll steal all of your stuff!"

 _I'll probably be dead or in captivity if that happens, and then this stuff won't be any use to me._ But Daunte didn't say that out loud. "Ichirou, can you do me a favor?"

"Sure, what is it?"

"If the Holy Army _does_ come, you can probably guess what will happen if you get captured."

"They'll send me to the Dark Chasm," Ichirou quickly responded. Fear filled his face. "I-I…Daunte, they almost sent me there but the Liberation Army saved me. Lord Bearyl saved me. I…" he shook his head furiously and he could only whisper the rest of the words, "I don't want to go there, Daunte!"

"No, you don't," Daunte agreed. "But if the enemy advances here you'll need an escape plan. Oboro will be coming with us for the upcoming siege, but I've spoken with Tidur so if the invasion comes here find Tidur. She has an escape plan already in place and she said she'd be more than willing to help others escape." Since he was unaware of any contingency plan in the event of a very possible invasion, he'd spoken with Tidur about a possible escape route. Tidur as it turned out already had one in place for herself and her daughters, and was open to helping others. Daunte made arrangements then to have Arin remain with Tidur's family so he could flee with them as quickly as possible if the worst occurred, and he notified all other recruits he'd obtained who were not participating in the siege to also follow Tidur's lead with this.

"O-Okay." Ichirou nodded and smiled. "Thank you, Daunte."

Daunte tucked the box under his arm and headed towards the barracks. All around him soldiers and civilians were getting ready, but he was growing increasingly uneasy. Mostly because _nobody_ seemed confident about their chances.

 _Well, I might as well get my worry out of the way now. If I'm worried when we march it might get me killed._

"Hi, Daunte!" Arin called out, waving to him. He was playing with his figurine on one of the beds, while Ciana sat beside him with her red string. It looked like she was playing Cat Whiskers. "You're about to leave, aren't you?"

"Yes, I am," Daunte said. He ruffled Ain's hair as he craned his neck around. "Is Esther around?"

"She's over there, complaining to Mom," Ciana said bluntly, gesturing with her pinky.

"Thank you." Daunte indeed saw Esther standing with Tidur and headed over to them. Tidur was calming making a bed while Esther panicked at her side.

"—to leave _now_!" Esther insisted, wringing her hands. "If they come while we're still here—"

"Everything will be fine, Esther. I'll look out for the both of you, I promise."

"Is everything okay?" Daunte asked them.

"Yes," Tidur reassured him, smiling. "Take care of yourself out there today, okay?"

"I will." Daunte turned his attention to Esther. "I noticed you have a passion for decorating windows, and well…" he held out the box to her. "I'm not entirely sure _what_ this does, but I thought you could make use of it."

Esther's eyes went wide and she snatched the box. "I-Is this a real _windows set_?!" she pushed back the lid and squealed with delight at the contents inside. "I've never seen an actual windows set before, but I've heard so much about them! And now I have one for myself!" she looked up and positively smiled at Daunte. "Thank you so much! Would you like me to test it out now?!"

"I don't think Daunte has time for you to test out your new windows set," Tidur told her. She forced a smile at Daunte. "Thank you for this gift, Daunte. Please take care of yourself out there."

Daunte wanted ask what exactly _was_ a windows set, but he reminded himself he _was_ short on time. "Thank you for looking out for Arin for me."

"Anytime."

It was difficult to look at Tidur though, because he could see the strain in her face. He nodded at them and turned to walk back over to Arin. "Do you remember what I told you?"

"Follow whatever instructions Ms. Tidur gives me," Arin said. But he smiled at Daunte. "But you're coming back, so I'm not worried."

"Thanks for having faith in me." Daunte knelt down to give his brother a quick hug. However, his stomach was churning. He'd been nervous before the siege on Sloan Faakhir's Garrison, but _this_ feeling was entirely different. He was afraid—very afraid.

 _I can't help but feel that something bad is going to happen._

* * *

Daunte managed to shake off the worst of his unease as he regrouped outside with Roen and Felicity. It _was_ a relief to see so many soldiers look excited for the upcoming battle, but there wasn't too many of them. "Are you guys ready?"

"No," Roen said grimly, though he kept his voice soft. "This isn't like before. When we seized the other Garrison we knew that we outnumbered the enemy because they didn't have their full force there. But now…now I'm sure we're _definitely_ meeting a full-force!"

Felicity was breathing through her nose, no longer holding the self-confidence she always displayed. "None of this would be happening if Lord Bearyl hadn't casted that boy out," she hissed angrily. "No—No in fact, none of this would be happening if he hadn't been so _pig-headed_ and had helped Agameru when he could! Now the lives of _everyone_ here is at risk!"

"There's nothing we can do about it now other than try very hard to succeed," Daunte said. He paused for a moment before adding, "And hope really, _really_ hard that if Zander told the Sheikh of our location that the Sheikh hasn't reported it to the capital yet."

"Daunte!" a soldier called out to him. "Lord Caesar wishes to speak with you!"

"A-Are you going to be put in charge of another unit?" Felicity asked.

"If that's the case, then I sincerely hope I get put on your squad," Roen said.

Daunte wasn't entirely certain, but he followed the soldier to Caesar's location. The strategist as usual was all smiles. He looked as though nothing was wrong. "Daunte, I'm putting you in charge of a unit again. Your unit was instrumental in seizing Sloan Faakhir's Garrison before, so I know I can trust you with a position of authority."

Daunte didn't know _why_ Caesar would want him to lead a unit again, and the thought of having the lives of one hundred soldiers in his hands for a very _risky_ battle was unsettling. He almost wanted to refuse Caesar on the spot—to ask him to choose someone else for the job.

"We're going to be dividing our soldiers into six units," Caesar explained to them. "I will be with Lord Bearyl's unit. Varnaz, Gunther, and Allise will each command a unit like before, and there will be a single infantry unit on the field. If you're so inclined, you can command the sixth unit."

"Do…Do you really want to put that much faith in me?" Daunte asked. "I-I mean, I'm just a kid. I also abandoned the Garrison before and disobeyed orders."

"You're not _just_ a kid, Daunte," Caesar corrected him. "You're an inspiration to these soldiers."

"But _how_?! I've done nothing to inspire anybody!"

"Oh? Then how come whenever our Lordship has sent you out on a recruitment quest you _always_ return with new recruits? How come your fellow soldiers have nothing but praise for you?" Moreover." Caesar leaned in close. "A _True Rune_ chose you to yield its power. Do you have any idea how _rare_ that is? You're not giving yourself enough credit, Daunte. Although truthfully, you've not been given enough opportunity to truly shine here. But I'm giving you this responsibility because you can handle it, and I trust you."

Daunte stared at him blankly for a long moment. It puzzled him as to why people saw him as an inspiration when he felt he wasn't doing anything to inspire anybody. But he swallowed thickly and nodded. "I…all right, Caesar. Thank you for this opportunity."

"Thank me after we've won the battle, Daunte."

"All right, let's get this over with," Bearyl grumbled, adjusting his breastplate. "We'll focus our energy on killing Sheikh Keiran Umed. Killing a Sheikh will strike a decisive blow against the Army and will protect our location."

"What about Zander?" Gunther asked.

"What about him?"

"Well…my Lord, you gave a speech just hours ago stating that we're going to rescue him."

"The only thing I want to do for that _brat_ is run him through with my sword when I see him," Bearyl seethed, tapping the hilt of his sword with an open palm. "We're in this position right now because of him."

 _We're in this position now because of YOU,_ Daunte corrected him silently.

"Caesar, send out the call! We're moving out now!"

Daunte gulped audibly and let out a short breath. _This is it. We have to succeed today, or the lives of everyone here will be forfeit._

* * *

The Liberation Army versus Sheikh Keiran Umed

Sheikh's Forces: 600

Liberation Army Forces: 600

Victory: Sheikh Keiran Umed's unit falls

Failure: Daunte's unit falls

The Liberation Army was advancing at a steady pace. Bearyl and Varnaz's units were on horseback while the rest were on foot. Daunte kept his face and mind blank, revealing none of his emotions. Truthfully he was a lot calmer than he was before they started advancing, but now that he was being followed by Roen, Felicity, and ninety-seven other soldiers, he knew he had to maintain calm as their leader.

 _We're going to win. We have to win!_

Caesar had explained the plan to them carefully. When they were within eight kilometers of the Sheikh's fortress the six units would split into three groups of two units. Two of the three groups would flank the Garrison from both sides as an ambush, while the third charged from the front. Daunte's unit had been grouped with the infantry unit to attack from the left, while Gunther and Allise's units would attack from the right. After both groups engaged the Garrison, then both Bearyl and Varnaz's units would attack from the front.

Daunte looked at the solitary soldier commanding the infantry unit, and saw that the man was at least fifteen years older than him, and visibly nervous. The man's unease unfortunately was also having a negative effect on the soldiers behind him. Daunte sighed shortly. _All right. I'll lead this unit as well. So this is…two hundred people I'll be commanding?_

Daunte heard the short blast of a horn, and the infantry leader jumped in alarm. _That's the signal. We spread out now._ Daunte hurried over to the infantry leader. "Follow my lead. We should arch out the units in a crescent shape, thin out the numbers so that archers will have a more difficult time targeting us."

"R-Right," the infantry leader stammered. He looked relieved that Daunte was assuming full control. "F-Fall into formation!" he shouted to his unit.

Daunte saw that both Gunther and Allise branched their units away from Bearyl, Caesar, and Varnaz, and he signaled with his arm to do the same. "On my signal, we'll approach the northwest wall of Sheikh Umed's Garrison!" Daunte shouted. "How many of you served in my unit during the siege on Sheikh Faakhir's Garrison?"

Three quarters of the soldiers in front of him raised their hands. "Good! We're going to deploy the same strategy this time! But this time we're going to focus the attention of the Garrison on us so that Lord Bearyl's unit can advance forward! They'll have rune users and archers, so to minimalize our losses! Just follow—"

Daunte abruptly cut off when shouts of alarm filled the air. He heard them coming straight from Allise and Gunther's units and slowly turned around. When he took in the sight in front of him, his bravado very abruptly drained from him and he let out a short sigh of fear.

Less than three kilometers away, he saw an Army unit that framed the horizon. They were dressed in silver and white and there was a _lot_ of them. Almost all of them were on horseback—cavalry units. Daunte looked sideways at the other infantry unit, and looked over his shoulder at his own infantry unit, and remembered grimly that cavalry units were superior to infantry units.

A lone figure on horseback broke away from the army unit and rode forward. They were completely unperturbed at the possibility of getting attacked by archers. "I am Sheikh Keiran Umed!" the person shouted out to them. "I am a fifth generation Sheikh—I inherited this position from my father, as my father did from his! Liberation Army soldiers—today is the day that your tyranny against my country comes to an end!"

"I am Sheikh Tamara Nuori!" a shout came from Daunte's right and he quickly turned his head. Five kilometers away he saw more Holy Army soldiers. It was merely two cavalry units, but the smaller group did not reassure Daunte. "I am the daughter of High Cleric Hassan Nuori, who held his seat in the Cabinet of High Clerics for _sixteen years_ until his untimely death! In the name of Nagar, I will strike you all down!"

"Gunther wasn't kidding," Roen breathed. "Did you hear her voice? She really _is_ a kid—younger than us!"

"Guys!" Felicity cried out in alarm.

Daunte looked to his left and his mouth hung open. A third group was also five kilometers away. Like Tamara's group it was only two cavalry units. This group did not do any introductions, but Daunte recognize the body shape of the person leading this group and trembled. It was Sloan Faakhir.

But this fear paled in comparison to the horrible realization that swept his body.

 _We've fallen into a trap._

"That little _bastard_!" Daunte heard Bearyl shout. "He sold us out! I knew that spineless worm would sell us out!"

"My Lord, the Sheikh wouldn't have gotten Zander if you hadn't thrown him out to begin with," Caesar admonished him. Daunte was shocked to see the strategist chastise his lord so publicly.

"Everyone hold your positions," Daunte said. "I need to get updated orders. I'll be right back, I swear!"

"Please hurry," Felicity said. "The Holy Army won't wait for us to come up with a plan!"

Daunte sprinted back to Bearyl's unit, and he saw that Gunther and Allise were also racing back to Bearyl's unit. "My Lord!" Gunther shouted when they reached him. "We need a plan _now_!"

"A retreat at this point is impossible," Caesar said grimly. His eyes roamed their surroundings, watching the units advancing upon them from all sides. "They would simply follow us back. And they undoubtedly know where our headquarters is now."

"I swear to Nagar that I will _kill_ that brat the next time I see him!" Bearyl raged. He was so furious that he was practically frothing at the mouth.

"Let's focus on surviving this battle," Varnaz said. "I believe our only chance of success at this point would be to attack the three Sheikh units directly. We'll still be outnumbered, but if we disable the main units it will hobble the other units."

"Good thing," Caesar said. "Sheikh Umed is too far away for us to reach, so for right now we'll focus on disabling Sheikh Nuori and Sheikh Faakhir. Gunther and Allise, Nuori is advancing upon your side so you two will engage her unit."

"Understood," Allise said. "I don't like the idea of attacking a fifteen-year-old girl, but she's obviously not here to play nice."

"So Daunte," Caesar said, looking to him. "I know this will be difficult for you, but focus your attacks on Faakhir."

"I have two infantry units taking on two cavalry units," Daunte pointed out grimly.

"That's an excellent point," Bearyl agreed. "Caesar, I'm going to assign you to Daunte's unit. He's going to need your guidance far more than I would."

"My Lord, Daunte's unit would benefit more with a cavalry unit as backup," Caesar said.

"I will send Varnaz out when the situation becomes dire," Bearyl told him. "For right now, our objective is to take out the Sheikh units. Daunte has the most difficult task, so I trust you to help him."

"…As you wish, my Lord," Caesar said finally. "Daunte, let's hurry back to your units before Faakhir reaches them."

The four of them took off running for their respective units, leaving Bearyl's and Varnaz's units standing at the back of the battlefield. "My Lord, I can surely help Daunte," Varnaz implored him. "If we're not careful, we could lose our strategist. _And_ a True Rune possessor!"

Bearyl watched Caesar and Daunte leave in a long moment of silence before turning to address his best friend. "Varnaz, I have the most important assignment for you in this battle."

"Of course, my Lord," Varnaz said, straightening in his saddle. "What is it?"

* * *

"Sheikh Faakhir and his subunit are advancing upon us in flanking formation," Caesar said, gesturing to the sight in question as though he were explaining an exhibit in an art gallery. "We're going to need to act quickly. Since the subunit is moving into position to attack us from the south, we'll need to rush forward and attack Faakhir from the front. Roen?"

"Yes, Lord Caesar?" Roen spoke up.

"I'll need you to take frontline position with Daunte and myself. The moment Faakhir gets into range, I'll need you to cast a quick spell with your Fire Rune. How many spells does your Rune have?"

"Two."

"Good. Then what I need you to do is use the Fire Rune in rapid succession. The fire should spread panic through the unit, so while they're panicking we'll rush in and take out the Sheikh's unit. Does anyone else have an elemental Rune?" Caesar called out.

"I-I have a Wind Rune!" soldier in the infantry unit shouted. "I have two spells!"

"Good! Conserve those spells, because we're going to need quite a bit of healing during this fight! Daunte." Caesar looked at him. "Hold off on using your Rune until we're out of other options, okay? We'll fight long enough to disable the Sheikh's unit—and with any luck hopefully _kill_ the Sheikh—and then we'll retreat back. Lord Bearyl said that Varnaz would be deployed to us if we get into trouble, but don't use that as a crutch."

"R-Right." Daunte turned to look at the soldiers behind them. "Forward march! For the Liberation Army!"

The soldiers cheered and charged forward. As Caesar predicted, Sloan Faakhir was riding down upon them from the front. Daunte saw Adalgiso, and remembered that the man had saved him from being beaten to death, but he shook off the feeling.

"Roen, _now_!" Caesar shouted, running behind them. Daunte realized too late with alarm that Caesar was not armed, and yet was charging with them as though he were a soldier. He deliberately stepped in front of the strategist, determined to protect his life.

" _Flaming Arrows_!" Roen shrieked, raising his hand. The sky above them turned dark, and suddenly Sloan Faakhir's unit was consumed by fire raining down from the heavens. Soldiers shrieked in agony and the horses panicked, bucking wildly and throwing their riders clean off.

"Now!" Caesar shouted again. Daunte came alongside a soldier trying to quell his bucking horse and jumped up, punching the man in his sternum. The soldier gagged while Daunte hoisted himself up on the horse and delivered a succession of punches to the soldier's face. The man fell off his horse unconscious and Daunte jumped off the horse, getting out of its way as it ran off.

"Fall back!" Caesar then shouted. Daunte scrambled to his feet, realizing the firestorm was fading. He realized he hadn't gotten close to the Sheikh and looked in his direction. Bile rose sharply in his throat at what he saw. Sloan's horse had panicked, but the man himself did not. And any Liberation Army soldier that had tried to attack him had been slain. Daunte counted at least a dozen bodies draped over each other around the Sheikh's horse.

"Use your Wind Rune!" Caesar shouted as they fell back. The solider in question complied, shouting " _Healing Wind_!" and quickly healed the units of their injuries. It was not a moment too soon, however, as Faakhir's subunit was suddenly upon them. "Spread out, _spread out_!"

The brutality of warfare was never more apparent to Daunte than in that moment. He'd known that cavalry units would always best infantry units, but he never knew it would be to… _this_ degree. The infantry unit alongside Daunte's sustained heavy losses in a matter of seconds. Daunte was horrified. He'd never seen so many people die so quickly in his life.

 _Use your Rune, USE YOUR RUNE!_

" _HOWL_!" Daunte shouted, raising his hand. The power of the Rune of Restoration engulfed the units, healing the remaining injuries.

Caesar surprisingly didn't yell at Daunte for prematurely using his Rune. "Again, Roen!"

Roen used his Fire Rune again, and since their units were flanked on all sides it meant that _both_ Sloan's unit and the subunit were engulfed in the spell. The shrieks and the neighing horses filled Daunte's ears. Then, a new sound cut through the air.

"We've sustained many losses, Sir. We have to signal for the retreat."

Daunte almost collapsed in relief. _It's over. We were successful._

His joy, however, was short-lived. "Did I ask for your input, Adalgiso? It was made perfectly clear to us that we were to crush the Liberation Army in this battle, and that is what we're going to do."

"Sheikh Faakhir, our soldiers have suffered severe burns and were trampled by their own horses. If we keep pushing them, then—"

"Tell them to scrape their bodies off the ground and keep fighting! If they can still breathe, they're going to keep fighting until they stop breathing. That is an order!"

"…Yes, Sir."

Daunte was incredulous. Sheikh Faakhir was going to _force_ his own soldiers to keep fighting, no matter what their injuries?! _Just retreat, PLEASE!_

But they did not retreat. The soldiers forced themselves to their feet and charged forward. They stank of burnt flesh and many had broken bones, but they did as commanded and continued to fight.

"I…was not expecting this," Caesar said at length, looking genuinely shocked. "The Sheikhs have a reputation for taking care of their soldiers, but this is…this is _Luca Blight_ levels of wrong, here."

"Who is Luca Blight?" Daunte asked before he could stop himself.

"Now is not the time for such things, Daunte. We're still outnumbered, but they've lost many of their horses. We have no choice but to keep engaging them."

So fight they did. Daunte did as he was told and did not use the Rune again, but he felt physically ill when he saw the soldiers dying all around him. Roen and Felicity continued to fight as well, but they were also injured. The soldier managed to cast another Wind Rune spell before he was cut down.

Daunte still could not get close to the Sheikh, but the man himself looked overwhelmed. Then he raised his right hand, and it glowed. "Felicity!" he shouted impulsively.

Felicity saw what was happening and threw one of her throwing knives. To Daunte's relief the knife met its mark and stabbed Sloan's palm. The Sheikh shouted in pain, and the Rune's glow abruptly faded. As he hunched over, Adalgiso gestured with his hand. "Fall back now!"

"Oh, you are a lifesaver!" Caesar laughed, hugging Felicity.

"It was all Daunte," Felicity laughed breathlessly. "I wouldn't have thought to throw the knife without him!"

Sheikh Faakhir didn't argue with Adalgiso this time and did a temporary retreat. His heavily injured subunit followed. The soldiers around Daunte cheered, but Daunte was not so reassured. Of their two units of two hundred soldiers, they barely had _half_ of that number left.

And he could see one of Sheikh Umed's infantry units advancing upon them.

"Get ready, everyone," Caesar said. He idly glanced over his shoulder. "We sh—" he abruptly cut off.

"What's wrong?" Daunte said.

"I need to go," Caesar said, turning back around to face them. "I need to see Lord Bearyl _now_."

"Wait, don't leave us!" Roen exclaimed. "We don't have a strategy!"

"Don't worry, don't worry," Caesar said, raising his hands. "As you can see, Allise and Gunther made short work of Sheikh Nuori's unit." Daunte _did_ indeed see that. He also saw that both Gunther and Allise had more surviving soldiers in their unit. "They're going to meet up with you guys to give assistance. I'll be right back, I promise." He sprinted back to Bearyl without another word.

"Where is—Desiree?!" Daunte shouted. He frantically waved the dancer forward. It was strange seeing her in full armor, but he was relieved she was unhurt. "You're fast on your feet. Hurry over to Gunther and Allise and tell them we need help _now_."

"I'm on it," Desiree promised. She also took off running, and Daunte was inwardly amazed by how _fast_ she was.

"Get ready!" Felicity shouted. "I-I might be able to use my Kite Rune like an archery attack! How do archery units fare against cavalry units again?"

"Not good," Daunte said. "But we have no choice. Give it a try!"

Felicity used her Kite Rune on the infantry unit advancing upon them. Daunte was amazed to see hundreds of knives rained down upon them. But his stomach turned as only _two_ soldiers fell to the attack. The rest kept marching, undeterred.

"Don't panic yet, Daunte! The day is still young!"

Daunte almost laughed in relief as Gunther and Allise's units charged forward to defend them. A cavalry unit of Umed's charged towards them and Daunte looked to Allise. "H-How many spells on your Rune do you have left?!"

"Two," Allise told him calmly. Daunte was amazed that she hadn't used it at all yet. "Just give me a moment and I'll use it!"

The moment itself came when the cavalry unit arrived to engage their four units. Allise called forth her Pale Gate Rune and Daunte was scared by the ferocity of the spell. It not only scared the living daylights out of the enemy soldiers, but it also killed quite a few of them. The infantry unit quickly retreated, but the cavalry unit lingered.

And out of the corner of Daunte's eye, he saw Sloan Faakhir's unit return to the battlefield.

He heard Gunther cuss violently, and Daunte turned to look again. _Two more_ of Keiran Umed's cavalry units were upon them. It wasn't long before _their_ four units were swarmed by four cavalry units—two that were heavily injured, but two that were at full strength.

It was mass chaos. Daunte hear nothing but screams around him and the impacting sound of weapons against flesh and bone. He spun around wildly, fending off attacks and trying to locate his friends. All he saw was a wall of horses and angry-faced Holy Army soldiers.

"Fall back—FALL BACK!" Gunther shouted in a voice Daunte had never heard before. It terrified him. "Allise, please!"

"I-I'm on it!" Allise shouted. Her tone of voice also chilled Daunte to the bone. Both of them sounded terrified. It was not reassuring at all. " _O-OPEN GATE_!"

It was undoubtedly the final spell she had left, but it surely counted. Once again it terrified the enemy soldiers and caused massive casualties. It was the distraction they _sorely_ needed to disentangle themselves from the battle and retreat. Roen and Felicity thankfully had minor injures, but Daunte saw that Desiree was limping and threw her arm over his shoulder, practically dragging her away.

"M-My foot," she complained softly. "One of the s-soldiers was wearing tanker boots. I-I think my ankle is—"

"Don't worry, we'll get you back and Clara can use her Flowing Rune on you," Daunte reassured her. But the guilt quickly overwhelmed him. _If it wasn't for her, then she'd still be on Baltas dancing_.

Thankfully the soldiers were too busy recuperating to follow their retreat back to Bearyl Lutis. Daunte bristled when he saw Bearyl's cavalry unit completely unengaged from what had happened, but he saw the anger in the soldier's faces and calmed down. But it was short-lived.

"—don't understand _anything_!" Caesar shouted, wringing his hands in fury. "How can you be so STUPID?!"

"Don't you talk to _me_ like that, Caesar!" Bearyl shouted back at him. "I did exactly what I had to do in order for us to win!"

"We've lost the battlefield!" Caesar roared. "More than a _third_ of our soldiers are dead! In what realm of reality did you think such an idea would be a good idea?!"

Daunte gaped at this display. _Our commander and our strategist are fighting._ _ **Publicly**_ _fighting._

"What is the meaning of this?" Gunther demanded, rushing forward. For once he acted as the voice of reason. "This is not the time or the place to be fighting amongst ourselves! The enemy is still advancing, can't you both see that?!"

"Our Lord sent Varnaz to attack Sheikh Umed's unit _directly_!" Caesar snapped.

Gunther's face abruptly fell. "…What?"

"The goal of this battle was to attack the Sheikh units and disable them," Bearyl said defensively. "We've disabled Faakhir and Nuori. It was only logical to—"

"Sheikh Umed is at the _back_ of the battlefield!" Caesar interrupted harshly. "He hasn't engaged any of our units! And yet you sent Varnaz's _entire unit_ to go behind enemy lines to attack the Sheikh?! Do you have any idea what you've done?!"

"What I've done is secure victory for us. Varnaz will dispatch of Sheikh Umed, and I will send a secondary unit to aid in his retreat. It was the only course of ac—"

"Oh Nagar, you sent Varnaz on a _suicide mission_!" Gunther suddenly shouted. He wrung a hand through his hair. "You sent your best friend and _all_ his men to their deaths! Our Lieutenant General…" he fell to his knees. It was surprising to see Gunther so upset over Varnaz's fate, considering they didn't get along at all, but even Gunther understood what the consequences would be if they lost Varnaz.

"My Lord, how could you think this was a good idea?" Allise asked quietly. Her face was pale. "Sheikh Umed's forces are still advancing, and the other Sheikh's forces are recovering to join in the advance. How exactly is a secondary unit supposed to reach Varnaz in time to ensure he gets out of there alive?"

Something flickered in Bearyl's face—almost like horrifying realization. But just as quickly the expression was gone and his face hardened. "I trust Varnaz more than I trust the lot of you. He understands what it means to be a soldier, and the sacrifices that come with it. He will do his duty to the end."

"S-So you _aren't_ sending the secondary unit after him?!" Daunte exclaimed.

"Through _that_?" Bearyl snapped, gesturing. Daunte turned and saw that literally _hundreds_ of soldiers were advancing upon them. "This was a failure. That stupid boy has cost us so much. We need to get back to headquarters and focus on evacuating. They know of our location—we have to cut our losses while we can and flee." He snapped his teeth together.

"I…agree with you," Caesar said very reluctantly. "We have no choice but to fall back and get our remaining people out of harm's way. I'll signal for the retreat."

"W-W-We can't leave Varnaz to die!" Daunte shouted. "He's expecting assistance from us! W-Would he have even _agreed_ to do this if you hadn't promised him a relief unit to help him?!"

"What do you expect me to do, Daunte?!" Bearyl snapped at him. "Sacrifice more of the men and women who serve under me?! Varnaz will do his duty and he will kill the Sheikh. This isn't an easy decision for me, but it's one I must do."

 _But it's YOUR fault he's in that position!_ But Daunte knew it would do no good to say that out loud. "Then _I'll_ go!" he seethed through clenched teeth. "I'll go and rescue Varnaz!"

"Daunte, that is not a risk I'm willing to take," Caesar said sharply. "You possess the True Rune. If capture or kill you, then they'll gain possession of it!"

"I'm not going to abandon him to die!" Daunte barked back. "I'll do what I must to save him!" he pulled back the glove on his right hand and knelt down. He scrubbed dirt onto the surface of his hand, covering up the Rune of Restoration. "There! Now they won't know it's me!"

"I'm with Daunte," Felicity said, stepping forward. "I want to save Varnaz as well."

"Me too," Roen spoke up. "We have to hurry though, before he's lost to us for good!"

Caesar looked between Bearyl and Gunther and Allise before looking back at Daunte. "…All right," he said very reluctantly. "Go and save him. But take only five people with you. You'll draw less attention that. Tell me now who you want to come with you, and I'll summon them here immediately."

"We have to stay with our units to evacuate," Gunther said, gesturing to Allise. "But please be careful. Don't you dare get yourselves killed."

"Move quickly and find Varnaz," Allise said. "If you can't find him or can't reach him, then retreat. There's no shame in doing that."

"Daunte," Caesar said insistently. "I need your decision now. Besides Roen and Felicity, who is coming with you?"

Daunte only had a moment to think before he blurted out names. "Jantu. A-And Sharon and her dragon."

"Well the dragon should scare the daylights out the soldiers," Allise said. "All of you _please_ be careful."

"We'll see you guys later," Gunther said, dragging Daunte into a hug. "We'll leave clues along the way of where we're going so keep watch."

"Just be careful and _stay alive_ ," Caesar implored them.

"T-Thank you," Daunte tried to force a smile but couldn't manage. He knew he was doing the right thing, but he still felt sick to his stomach. _I'm sorry, Arin…_

* * *

Varnaz never made it to Sheikh Keiran Umed's forces. His unit was headed off by a separate cavalry unit. They were evenly matched, until another cavalry unit attacked them from behind. _This_ unit was full of injured soldiers but they still outnumbered Varnaz's unit.

 _What is this? Why are Gunther and the others allowing the enemy to fall back? I'm going to keep getting sidetracked at this rate!_

" _General_!" Varnaz barely heard the private's shout over the chaos of the battle. "The Liberation Army—they're retreating!"

"Keep your eyes open!" Varnaz barked over his shoulder. He parlayed the last soldier's blow and smacked him in the face with his morningstar. He nursed his side slightly. He hadn't been fully stabbed, but he _had_ been nicked by a sword. "They'll be here any moment!"

"No, sir, they're all leaving! Everyone's fleeing the battlefield!"

Varnaz rolled his eyes and seeing a free moment marched upon his soldier and wrung his collar with one hand. "Lord Bearyl is sending reserves after us!" he snarled into the younger man's face. "But if you continue to carry on like this, our foes will realize we've led them into a trap!"

"Sir!" another soldier shouted, scrambling up the hill towards them. "They've called for the retreat! Everyone is falling back! _Everyone_!"

Varnaz lifted his towards the back of the battlefield. He saw recognize Bearyl's squad by the banners they held, and they were riding furiously in the opposite direction of the battlefield. His eyes quickly scanned the fighting around them. All over the place he saw a sea of blue breaking away from the battle and running and riding away. The Theocracy's Army was swiftly giving chase on these groups, but everyone was running away.

There was not one group running in their direction.

"Does this mean we're supposed to retreat, too?" another soldier asked softly.

" _How_ can we retreat?!" the first snarled. "We snuck behind enemy lines to get to this position! How in the name of Nagar do we get out of here?!"

Varnaz said nothing. He just stood there and watched the fleeing Army. Watched his best friend ride away.

" _My Lord, this is risky. I'm confident I can reach Sheikh Umed, but how are we going to get ourselves out of this? I can't commit my soldiers to such a plan without a safety net."_

" _Don't worry, Varnaz. Once you carve a path towards Umed, I'll send another unit after yours. They'll extract you from the battlefield and escort you back. Just trust me with this."_

"Sir!" a soldier shrieked in alarm. Behind them, a unit of well over thirty soldiers was quickly advancing upon them. Varnaz turned and rushed to the front to protect what remained of his soldiers, but he couldn't stop from looking back over his shoulder. He could no longer see Bearyl or his unit.

 _I don't believe it. He abandoned me to die after swearing he would look out for me? For my men?_ He looked at his soldiers, the men and women who served under him and had always given him unconditional trust and respect. He saw the anguish and anger in their faces. He'd led them to a senseless, needless death. _What…What have I done?_

" _Flaming Arrows_!"

Varnaz's jaw dropped and his eyes widened as the Fire Rune spell engulfed their enemies. They shrieked in terror and in pain as six bodies suddenly took position in front of Varnaz and his soldiers.

"Sorry we're late!" Daunte shouted over his shoulder. He counted only twenty soldiers left of Varnaz's unit, and he cursed himself for arriving late. "The Army has fallen back, so you guys need to fall back too!"

" _Y-You're_ the reserves sent to assist us?!" a soldier cried out. "How are we supposed to get out of here?!"

"As you've undoubtedly noticed, the battle has created a dust cloud over the area," Jantu pointed out. "Use the dust cloud as cover for your retreat. We'll distract the soldiers long enough for you to get out."

Varnaz gaped at Daunte. "Y…All you came out here to save us?"

"No thanks to your boneheaded leader," Sharon barked. She grinned down at Suna. "Go and break a couple of legs!"

"Here they come!" Daunte shouted. Suna did indeed rush forward and started breaking legs with her dragon mouth. The sight of the dragon was _very_ startling for the soldiers, who either fled in terror or were writhing on the ground in agony.

"We'll cover you!" Felicity snapped at Varnaz and his troops. "But you need to go now before more show up!"

"T-Then the six of you are going be out here alone?" Varnaz said incredulously. "I-I-I can't do that! I can't simply—"

"Go, _now_!" Daunte snapped, shoving Varnaz in the shoulder with one arm. "You're the Lieutenant General! Our Army will crumble without you! Save your men and save yourself, I'll cover your retreat!"

Varnaz's soldiers finally obliged and took off running. Varnaz himself however lingered, and he swallowed thickly before he nodded. "I won't forget this, Daunte. If you survive this, I swear to you I won't forget this."

"Guys!" Roen shouted. Daunte looked over his shoulder and saw two dozen more soldiers charging at them, bellowing out war cries and swinging their weapons.

"We've got you covered, now GO!" Felicity shouted, brandishing her knives.

Varnaz said nothing more and took off running after his soldiers.

"What have I gotten us into, Suna?" Sharon said in a small voice, but she released her small dragon and readied her weapon, while Suna bellowed out a cry.

"Everyone, stand your ground!" Jantu commanded. "On my signal, engage!" they stood ready until the soldiers were three meters away. " _NOW!_ "

"Best Friends!" Daunte shouted. Roen and Felicity surged forward with him to unleash their unite attack on the entire enemy units. Daunte felt his hands go numb after striking five soldiers, but he didn't stop. He _couldn't_ stop.

"Dragon Knight Attack!" Sharon shouted as the trio jumped back. Suna quickly rose into the air and after a couple of heaves blew out a small stream of fire. It was only enough to set a single soldier on fire, though the flames jumped onto two other soldiers. But the sudden appearance of the small dragon utterly terrified the soldiers, who jumped back in alarm. Those who didn't get out of range quickly enough were hit by Sharon's swinging spear.

Less than five minutes later only four enemy soldiers remained, but Daunte and his group were seriously injured. He rubbed the back of his right hand and frowned. _I only have one spell left. I should save it, but at this rate we won't survive fleeing the battlefield._

He lifted a hand and shouted. " _Howl_!" the spell did its work however and healed their group.

"I-It's him!" one of the soldiers shrieked. "He has the True Rune! He—"

Jantu struck him down before his shouts could carry, and the remaining soldiers were also dispatched. "It's time to go!" the Kobold boomed out. "We're not going to survive another wave!"

"Yeah, no kidding!" Roen shouted. "We rescued Varnaz, let's get out of here!"

"We're surrounded by dust clouds!" Sharon exclaimed, grabbing for Suna. "How will we get out of here alive?!"

"We'll find a way!" Daunte said. "But no more stalling, let's go!"

The group turned to run, but Daunte felt something snag his right ankle and suddenly found himself flat on his face in the dirt. He looked up to see the group running away. "Guys!" he shouted after them.

"Daunte!" Felicity shouted in alarm. They turned to run back to him.

Daunte rolled over onto his back and saw a mortally wounded enemy soldier grabbing for him. The man's face was streaked with blood, but his eyes—his eyes frightened Daunte. They looked…

The soldier's free hand pressed into the dirt as he struggled to sit up. He was _spitting_ out blood as he struggled to speak. " _Voice of Earth_."

The man's right hand glowed, and a greenish-brown symbol in the shape of an explosion rose into the air. The ground beneath Daunte shook, and in a panic he rolled to avoid the Rune's spell. The soldier hung onto his ankle, however, and there was an explosion of dirt into the air. Rocks and clumps of dirt rained down Daunte, but he had somehow avoided the worst of the spell.

But then the ground caved in from underneath him.

Suddenly he was falling and down a hill created by the power of the Rune's spell. He heard his friends shrieking above him, but Daunte didn't scream. He _couldn't_ scream. All he could do was curl and protect his head as his body slammed its way down the hill.

Finally, his body came to a stop. He was sore all over and he groaned pitifully. He was only vaguely aware that his ankle was free. He opened his eyes groaned but then only quickly closed them when the world shook violently. But though brief, his eyes were open long enough to see the soldier who had caused this carnage. The man lay in the dirt, his body twisted up in an unnatural position. Daunte didn't know if he was still alive.

Daunte blinked and his vision rattled. He groaned and rolled onto his side, clutching at his head. He took several deep breaths, trying to calm himself, as he rose shakily onto his hands and knees. With some considerable effort he raised his head…and recoiled in alarm.

He was surrounded. All around him were soldiers of the Holy Army in their silver uniforms. All of them were pointing their swords at him. Daunte raised shaking hands and slowly stood up. He looked around himself and only saw the dead body of the soldier who had fallen down the hill with him. The others were nowhere to be found.

 _They escaped. Good._ He breathed out a sigh of relief, even as his stomach clenched with dread.

"Stand down!"

The soldiers immediately sheathed their swords as two figures rode through the dust cloud and into the clearing. One of them was wearing the Sheikh's uniform, and Daunte couldn't stop the whimper from escaping his throat. _Oh no. If that's Sloan Faakhir, I'm surely going to die!_

"Sheikh Umed!" a soldier greeted them. All of the saluted as Daunte hunched over once more with relief. _It's not him. I don't know if I'm going to survive this, but at least I know I won't be tortured._

" _This_ is all that's left of the rebel army?" Keiran asked. His face was hidden behind his hood but the incredulity was evident in his voice. "A teenaged boy sent behind enemy lines? I knew Bearyl Lutis was a fool, but what sort of man sends a _child_ on such an idiotic quest?"

Daunte was surprised by Keiran's demeanor. He would think the Sheikh would recognize him as the child who "stole" the True Rune from the Matron, but he said nothing about it. _So he doesn't know it's me? I should keep it that way, then._

"The boy rescued Varnaz Behzadi," a young soldier spoke up. Daunte bristled slightly as he took this particular soldier in, as he looked _younger_ than Daunte himself. "The Lieutenant General successfully escaped, while he provided a distraction."

"Really?" Keiran asked. He lifted his gaze to meet Daunte's. "You sacrificed yourself to save a fool not smart to know he's following a bad order? That was very brave of you…and very stupid. It's a pity that the Liberation Army didn't realize or respect your character. What is your name?"

"…Daunte," Daunte said shakily. He took one step back.

"Greetings to you, Daunte." Keiran bowed slightly. "I am Keiran Umed, Sheikh of the Holy Army and commander of the northeastern provinces. It's a shame you chose to follow a man like Bearyl Lutis, Daunte. Someone of your character would've gone much farther and done far better under my tutelage."

"I could never do that," Daunte impulsively blurted out.

"Is that so?" Keiran asked him. "Why not? You would've gone far with my help."

"I could never join an Army that supports monstrosities like the _Dark Chasm_." Daunte realized too late he was making himself far too obvious and stiffened. _I said too much! He's going to figure me out!_

"Ah," Keiran said, straightening. "Is the prison camp why you joined the Liberation Army? While I freely admit I don't support such a facility, I cannot deny it was created by Holy Decree. And I'm sure you're well aware that it's still in operation—that your Liberation Army has done nothing to _liberate_ those children. So here you are, at my mercy and the Dark Chasm still in operation. Was this all worth it to you?"

Daunte bit down hard on his bottom lip. He didn't want the Sheikh to realize who he was, especially with his _Howl_ spell completely used up, so he said nothing.

"I could hand you over to the Theocracy," Keiran said. "But seeing as you are in this current circumstance because of your desire to save another's life, I believe you deserve better than the standard public execution you would be facing as both a heretic and a traitor." He suddenly unsheathed his weapon, revealing a Kampilan sword, and pointed the tip at Daunte. "A man of honor such as yourself deserves to die an honorable death. Therefore I challenge you to single combat, Daunte. More specifically, a duel."

Daunte was glad that he learned about duels from Jantu, but his heart still dropped into his stomach. This wasn't for practice now. He was facing off against a _Sheikh_ , _and_ he was exhausted from the battle. He didn't know how he could win this.

"It will be a fair duel with no outside inference," Keiran told him. "I don't make it a habit to linger, so you will scarcely feel any pain."

"What happens if I win?" Daunte asked him.

"You're not going to win," Keiran responded, but there was no arrogance in his tone. Just a simple stating of the facts…and Daunte knew he was telling the truth. "But if you defeat me you will be freed. It's the least I can do, for such a humiliating circumstance would be deserving to me if I fell at your hand."

"My Lord."

Keiran looked over his shoulder as a second man stepped forward. Daunte knew by the man's uniform that this was the Sheikh's second-in-command. "I ask permission to duel in your place."

Keiran narrowed his eyes at the other man, and Daunte was certain he was frowning behind his hood. "Mihr, I was the one who issued the challenge. It is only right that I fight him."

Mihr unsheathed his weapon, revealing a great sword. "I too am in awe of his good character and would like the opportunity to duel him. But despite his honor I do not believe he is worthy of dueling you, and so he should not be rewarded with such an honorable death. I will give him nothing less, but I believe if there's anyone's blade he should fall to, it should be mine."

Keiran stared at him for a long moment before he slowly nodded and sheathed his own sword. "I hope you will excuse me, Daunte, but Mihr will challenge you in my place."

Daunte swallowed thickly as Mihr walked over to stand in front of him. Mihr appeared to be the same height as Keiran at around 187 centimeters, but he had a stockier build to him. By his stance and the way he held his sword, he was obviously a very seasoned warrior. Daunte met his eyes and had to look away. Mihr did not look upon him with contempt, but it wasn't with indifference, either. It was almost…pity.

"It's a shame I have to meet a young man with so much potential on opposing sides like this," Mihr said. Around them, Keiran's soldiers formed a wide circle. It was impossible for Daunte to even attempt to escape. "By my oath, I swear by my sword Nariek that I will best you."

Daunte was shaking, but he assumed his stance as Mihr raised his great sword and assumed the ox position. All around them the soldiers began to cheer and shout, all for encouragement for Mihr. Daunte was puzzled as to why they were wasting their time here when they probably should've been chasing after the fleeing Liberation Army.

 _But if they waste their time here, that'll allow the others to escape more easily._

"Let me start with a simple warm-up," Mihr said suddenly. Daunte braced himself. _T-That sounds like an attack. So I must attack too!_ Daunte rushed forward just as Mihr did. Daunte threw a punch and heard a 'clang' noise as his tekko met the armor on Mihr's torso. Undeterred, Mihr swung his blade and Daunte shouted in pain as the blade grazed his left shoulder.

"That was a good effort, but you'll need to do better if you plan on defeating me," Mihr said. Daunte pressed a trembling hand to his bleeding shoulder, even as his mind quickly dissected the meaning of that statement. _A-Another attack!_

Mihr swung his sword, but luckily missed this time. Daunte had ducked to avoid the blow so he knew he couldn't reach Mihr's face, so he swung his fist and connected straight with the side of Mihr's body. His tekko met flesh. "Guh!" Mihr hissed in pain and jumped away. He nursed his side, but otherwise remained steady on his feet.

"I'm impressed," he said, rubbing at his side. "But do you think you can get under my guard like that again?"

It sounded like Mihr was going to defend, but when Daunte raised his hands there was a violent twitch of pain from his shoulder and his left hand dropped back again. _I should attack! I must attack! But my arm, it's—!_

In the end, they both defended. The soldiers around them continued to shouts words of encouragement to Mihr, but Keiran remained silent. Mihr suddenly straightened, no longer holding his side. "Thank you for letting me catch my breath, but you will regret it."

That sounded like a deathblow, and Daunte immediately went on the defensive. But to his horror Mihr still penetrated his guard. Daunte saw stars and screamed as the blade cut straight down his arm. _No, no! He attacked!_ Pain filled his mind, muting all his thoughts, as he hugged his bleeding right arm to his chest.

"I think it's time I take this seriously," Mihr said.

That _definitely_ sounded like a deathblow. Daunte feebly went on the defensive as Mihr charged at him again. His movements were far different this time, and Daunte felt a spike of adrenaline at the realization that he'd guessed correctly this time. Mihr swung his blade but Daunte ducked and swept Mihr's legs out from underneath him. He fell flat on his back and Daunte jumped onto him, straddling him. He punched Mihr three consecutive times in the face. _I-I might win this!_

To his shock however, Mihr barely flinched. He spat out blood but suddenly Daunte was flipped and suddenly _he_ was pinned to the dirt. _W-What? How is he still conscious?! I just knocked another man out with less punches!_

To his surprise however, Mihr did not attack him. Mihr instead retrieved Nariek and readied himself. "I'll give you credit where credit is due," he said in steady voice. "But you're not going to win this."

It sounded like an attack so Daunte launched himself from the dirt and charged Mihr. But his fist only met open air and he saw the swing of his swung. Daunte heard the 'thud' but he did not feel pain. He only saw a white flash fill he vision and suddenly lost all control of his body. He fell face first into the dirt.

Mihr had struck him on the back of his head with the flat of his sword.

Daunte's eyes fell shut, but he still saw white. He felt wetness on his nape, but he couldn't move. He almost felt like he was melting into the ground. He…

"Wait, Mihr."

It sounded like Keiran's voice, but Daunte didn't react. He couldn't open his eyes.

"—very impressed," Mihr was saying. "It's been far too long since someone could penetrate my guard like that."

"Go get yourself healed with a Water Rune. I've had a change of heart. I'm taking this child into custody."

 _I…I'm going to be a prisoner?_ Alarm filled Daunte's bodies as an assortment of hands grabbed at his limbs. He opened his eyes but only saw white. As he succumbed to darkness, he could still heard Mihr and Keiran talking.

"Will let him go like you let the other child go?"

"I'm not certain yet. But since he's a Liberation Army member, he should be able to provide some valuable information to us."

Daunte only had the strength to gurgle in protest, before he blacked out completely.

* * *

End of Chapter Two


	22. Chapter Three: Part One

Chapter Three: Part One

 _The rotunda was his favorite room. He liked to sit in the center of the room, between the four pipes, and just look up. The rotunda above was the same cream color as the rest of the room, but he found comfort looking up and watching the sun filter through the top._

" _Oh, Daunte."_

 _He turned his head and brightened when she saw her. "Mom!" He raced over and hugged her around the waist. She hugged him back as best as she could, but it was difficult because of the baby in her arms._

" _Your father and I have been looking for you, but I should've guessed you would be up here. Did you know this room is where they used to give morning and evening sermons?"_

" _They would stand right there, right?" Daunte asked, pointing to the spot between the pipes, where he had been standing. The four pipes were currently covered, but they arched out of the floor at different directions, and were taller than he was. "And they would speak into the pipes, right?"_

" _Yes. The place is so large, you know, and there was never a moment's rest, so Clerics would give the Morning Prayer from up here so that it could be heard all throughout the facility."_

" _So if I remove one of the pipe's lids, then everyone all over will hear me speak?"_

" _In a way, yes. But more importantly, we were looking for you." She touched her finger to Daunte's chin and turned his head up so he was looking at her. "Today was the day we were running drills, Daunte."_

" _Oh, I forgot!" Daunte wailed in dismay, slapping a hand to his forehead. "I'm so sorry, Mom!"_

" _No, it's fine. You're still a child and you want to play. I know we've put you in a precarious situation, but we want to be sure that you stay safe. That Arin stays safe. I couldn't live with myself if either of you was hurt, or worse."_

 _Daunte stared at Arin. His baby brother was tugging on their mother's hood, and strands of black hair began peeking out. "Can I hold him?" he held his arms out._

 _She leaned down and positioned Arin in his arms in such a way so that he could hold him without dropping him. "You're a wonderful big brother, Daunte. And I know that your father and I have put a lot of pressure on you. But I want you to promise me to look out for Arin if anything happens to us."_

 _The answer of was automatic. "Of course I'll look out for him. He's my brother, Mom."_

 _She smiled back at him sweetly. But…there was a tinge of sadness in that smile. "I know, Daunte…"_

* * *

Daunte opened his eyes and saw mostly darkness. He blinked rapidly, and his eyes slowly adjusted to the dim light. He felt a twinge of pain in his shoulder, and the memories flooded through him and fear snapped through his body.

 _I was taken prisoner._

He quickly sat up and checked his hands. He wasn't surprised to see his tekko gone, but he _was_ surprised to still see the gloves on his hands. His breathing became unsteady as he peeled back the glove on his right hand with trembling fingers. To his utter amazement, he still saw the dark mud smeared onto his hand. He licked his thumb and wiped at a corner of the dirt. It rubbed away, revealing the outline of the Rune of Restoration.

 _T-They didn't find my Rune? They seriously didn't find my Rune?!_ He quickly pulled the glove back down. _So…they don't know I have the True Rune? O-Or maybe they were so horrified by the condition of my hands that they didn't want to examine me further?_ He shuddered and shook his head. That thought wasn't exactly comforting.

But he took comfort in the fact that they hadn't found his True Rune. He let out a sigh of relief and took in the room around him for the first time. It was a prison cell—a very stereotypical prison cell with only a bed for furniture. There was no wall to his left, only bars, and above his head to his right was a small window that was open to the elements but similarly barred. Daunte slowly rose to his feet and walked the perimeter of the room. It was dark in the cell, and from what little he could see outside he saw that it was either dawn or dusk. He gingerly felt the areas of his injuries—his shoulder, his arm, the back of his head. They were sore, but he felt no bandages.

 _They must have used a Water or Wind Rune on me to heal me. Not enough to bring me back to full health, but enough to ensure that I didn't die._

Daunte approached the door to his cell. He looked around to see if he could see a guard, and though he found one he also saw that the guard was fast asleep at his desk. He tugged at the door to test its strength. Predictably, it didn't budge.

 _I need to get out of here._

Remembering that the Rune of Restoration had given him enough strength to pull Surya up and prevent the prince from falling to his death, Daunte gripped the door with his right hand. _Rune of Restoration, please give me the strength to tear down this door so that I can escape!_

He tugged again at the door. But again, the door didn't budge. Daunte glared at the back of his hand. _Why won't you help me? If I don't get out of here they're going to kill me, and then somebody else is going to claim you! Does that matter to you?_

"Well, well, well."

Daunte jumped in shock and looked through his bars. Across the aisle in the cell northeast to his, a woman was standing at her own bars. His eyes went wide with shock. He knew her. Or rather, he recognize her. The shoulder-length curly dark red hair that was almost black. The half-lidded violet eyes. The sultry demeanor she gave off with her body language and lazy smile. He had definitely seen her somewhere before.

 _She was in Baltas. In that house that was under guard._

"The Theocracy certainly has a knack for arresting handsome young men, doesn't it?" the woman _purred_ at him. "Why, not too long ago a broody young man was in the very cell you currently occupy. While you're no less handsome, I _do_ hope you're less broody and a little chattierthan he was."

She leaned against the bars, and Daunte noticed her attire for the first time. She wasn't wearing a veil, but a shapeless robe that stretched down to her feet. The robe had a hood, but the hood was currently pulled back.

But the attire itself was dark scarlet in color.

"What's your name, boy?" the woman continued to speak to him. "Since we're neighbors, we might as well become acquainted."

Daunte shook his head, trying to shake off the unease settling in his stomach. "W-Where are we?"

"We're at Sheikh Keiran Umed's Garrison," the woman responded. "We're both currently prisoners of his. His _only_ prisoners, so we might as well become friendly with each other. There's little else to do down here."

Daunte almost wanted to ask her what _she_ had done to get arrested for, but decided against it. _I need to get out of here and get back to the Liberation Army. Wherever they currently are now._

"I've got your breakfast."

Daunte jumped to attention as a teenage boy came down the stairs, balancing two trays of food in his arms. Daunte remembered him from the battle, but he also remembered him from the Bridge of Faith. _His name…was it Lenny? Lanny?_

"Right on time as always, Lanny," the woman greeted the young soldier. "Why don't you keep me company today?" she batted her eyelashes playfully.

"Please don't talk to me," Lanny told her curtly. The guard on duty had woken up and took one of the trays from Lanny. He set it on the tray stand on the woman's cell as Lanny turned to Daunte. "Here's your breakfast."

Instead of placing Daunte's tray on the tray stand, however, Lanny unceremoniously dropped the tray on the floor just outside Daunte's cell. The sound startled the guarded, and the woman huffed at Lanny with disapproval. "That's rather unkind."

"I'm sorry, did I hurt your feelings?" Lanny asked Daunte sardonically. The boy was glaring murderously at Daunte through the bars. "Well, deal with it. You'll get nothing else from us, you traitorous heathen."

Daunte stared blankly at him. He knew he shouldn't have been surprised by the hostility from the Sheikh's soldiers, but he shifted with discomfort at the hate in Lanny's face. "I…"

"Lanny?"

Lanny snapped to attention, as did the other guard, as two other figures came down the steps. Daunte quickly stepped away from the bars as he recognized the Sheikh uniform the man in front wore. _Keiran Umed. And…_ he recognized Mihr walking behind Keiran, and his shoulder tingled with pain once more.

"Lanny," Keiran said at length, looking down at the mess of food on the floor. "Can you explain that, please?"

"H-He did it!" Lanny lied, jabbing a finger at Daunte. "I set the tray down and he shoved it off the stand!"

"Oh, it isn't nice to lie," the woman quipped playfully from her cell.

Keiran's eyes lifted and they stared at Daunte. "I have taken you in and have treated your injuries. I don't appreciate any hostility shown to my soldiers."

Daunte gaped at him, and then gaped at Lanny. Lanny also looked surprised that Keiran believed him. "Lanny, go and get another breakfast for the prisoner."

"W-What?" Lanny sputtered. "S-Sir, I don't think we should take food away from the other soldiers just because this heathen wasted food!"

"I don't punish prisoners by starving them," Keiran told him sharply. "Now, please go and get another breakfast for him."

"I-I…yes, Sir." Lanny saluted and glared at Daunte once more before hurrying back up the stairs.

"Well," Keiran said, turning to face the bars. "Since you're responsible for this mess, you're going to clean it up." he motioned to the guard, who stepped forward to unlock the cell door.

"Please don't be so hard on the boy," the woman said, though her tone was still playful. "It's not his fault that Lanny dropped his tray on the floor."

"I don't think I need to remind you to not speak to any of my soldiers, my Lady," Keiran told her curtly. He turned back to Daunte and gestured to the mess on the floor. "Clean this up. We'll speak afterwards."

Daunte bit down on his lower lip. While he appreciated that Keiran Umed was not punishing him by depriving him of food (a punishment he was all too familiar with), he hated being punished for something that wasn't his fault.

 _But I'm simply cleaning up a food spill. This isn't as bad as everything else I've already endured._

Thankfully it was a quick clean. Daunte scooped up all the wasted food off the floor and threw it out. Then he took a wet rag and cleaned up the cereal and milk. Within a few short minutes there was no trace of a mess, even though the smell of food only served to make Daunte hungrier.

"Good," Keiran said. The guard shoved Daunte back into his cell and closed the door. "Your name is Daunte, correct?"

"Yes," Daunte said numbly.

"You're probably wondering why I'm keeping you alive instead of giving you an honorable death as promised."

Daunte _was_ curious, but he said nothing.

"You impressed me with how long you were able to keep up with Mihr," Keiran said. Mihr stepped forward to stand beside him. "Mihr also, was impressed with your skills."

"I've faced men twice your age with years of battle experience who were never able to match me so easily," Mihr said. "Not to mention the fact that I only was able to face you because you sacrificed yourself to save a superior officer. There's not many people out there, man or woman, with such a good constitution."

"H…" Daunte shook his head. "How long have I been here?"

"Three days," Keiran said bluntly. "Your allies in the Liberation Army have fled their headquarters. We've found no traces of them. While I spared you in part out of my respect for you, I also spared you because I thought you had some monetary value as a hostage."

"M-Monetary value?"

"Your capture by me is public knowledge. I _had_ thought that the Liberation Army would have some care to try and rescue you, given the fact that you risked everything to rescue Varnaz Behzadi. Ideally I thought this would bring them back out into the open while they tried to rescue you. Alas…" he opened his hands and shrugged slightly.

"…Alas?" Daunte asked softly.

"I've received no demands from the Liberation Army, and I've seen not a hair of them since the battle. None of my scouts have seen them either. I know that plenty of soldiers had escaped, but no one has moved against us." Keiran paused before he continued. "They seemed to have abandoned you, Daunte."

Daunte shook his head furiously and looked away. He didn't want to believe it, that the Army would abandon him. He didn't want anyone dying on his behalf, so he was glad that nobody was currently visible. But…

 _They didn't forget me. They couldn't have. They haven't made a move because our defeat was so complete and debilitating that they can't spare any resources to rescue me._

"For all intents and purposes they have abandoned you to your fate," Keiran continued. "So I'm here to offer you a deal. I will set you free and not turn you over to the Theocracy if you provide me with information about where the Liberation Army's current whereabouts are."

Daunte looked back at him defiantly. "I don't know where they are. And even if I did, I would never tell you where they are."

"While your grandstanding is admirable, I don't think you know Bearyl Lutis as well as you think you do," Keiran responded back. "Bearyl Lutis was a Cleric who was once in line to join the Cabinet of High Clerics. Alas, he was exposed as having accepted bribes during the course of his four years as a judiciary Cleric and was defrocked. His reformation of the Liberation Army wasn't out of some desire to better the country. His motivation was clearly _spite_ —revenge, as you will, against the Cabinet of High Clerics who exposed him as the corrupt clergyman he was."

Daunte's nostrils flared. As much as he disliked many of Bearyl's actions, as far as he was concerned bribery accusations paled in comparison to the actions of actual murderers. "So Nether Gate dismissed him for _bribery_? Since they're a league of killers, I'm not going to be offended by anything they accuse the Liberation Army leader of!"

"Nether Gate?" Keiran echoed slowly. He looked at Mihr. "What is Nether Gate?"

"I don't know," Mihr answered him.

"Nether Gate is an assassins group from Falena," Daunte said hotly. "They killed the real High Clerics and took over their positions in government!"

"Ah." Keiran looked back at Daunte. "That sounds like one of Bearyl Lutis's propaganda tools for Army recruitment. I wouldn't believe everything that man tells you, Daunte. He's already promoted falsehoods against the Theocracy before. Did you know he's spread lies that the Theocracy was responsible for the Kõrkus Massacre? Or how about his accusation that the Theocracy manufactured the Plague that virtually wiped out Farna? The man will stoop to any lows to justify waging war against the Theocracy."

Daunte swallowed thickly. While he wasn't sure about what caused the Plague, and he knew from Roen that the Theocracy _wasn't_ responsible for the Kõrkus Massacre, he definitely believed that the Cabinet of High Clerics was made up of Nether Gate assassins. It wasn't just Bearyl Lutis who had said such—Caesar had said so, and even Oboro said that it was so. But he knew that telling Keiran such things wouldn't make a difference, because Keiran believed them to be a lie.

"I'm still not going to tell you anything," Daunte retorted finally.

"I hope you realize that if you _don't_ tell me anything that I will be compelled to turn you over to the Theocracy," Keiran responded. "Do you know what the Theocracy does to heretics, Daunte? Your execution will be very public and will be very _painful_."

"I don't care! I'm not going to turn on the Army or my brot—" Daunte stopped himself, but he realized he said too much. _No! He's going to find out everything about me!_

But Keiran moved not a hair from Daunte's outburst. "I would think about it, Daunte. Within the week you are going to be escorted to Mlkwt Alsmwat to face your charges. I don't anticipate Bearyl Lutis doing anything for you before then, so please consider my offer." He turned to go.

"Oh, don't leave so soon, Sheikh," the woman called out to him. "Why don't we take some time and get to know each other?"

Keiran paused and turned to address her. "A date hasn't been set, my Lady. Until that time comes you will behave yourself and keep to yourself. Is that understood?"

"…Of course, my Lord," the woman responded, sobering up very slightly.

Keiran turned to head to the stairs, just as Lanny was coming down the stairs with Daunte's breakfast. "See to it that you don't drop the tray this time," Keiran told him curtly.

Lanny stiffened, and Daunte watched the Sheikh and Mihr leave with shock. _H-He knew I didn't cause that mess? B-But why did he make me clean it up?_

"Here's your breakfast," Lanny said sharply, shoving Daunte's tray onto the tray stand. Both the milk and cereal spilled, but it didn't create the mess that had happened before. Daunte gratefully took the tray, noting that the food quality was sub-par, but _leagues_ better than what he'd gotten in the Dark Chasm.

The woman called out to Lanny playfully again, despite Keiran's warning, but the teenager stormed back up the stairs. Daunte ducked his head over his head, trying to push down the nauseating fear he felt as he ate.

 _If the Army doesn't come for me, I'll need to escape on my own. I need to get out of here before they send me away._

* * *

Time passed excruciatingly slow in Daunte's cell. Unlike the Dark Chasm, where he had to perform harsh manual labor, he was simply stuck in his prison cell. The woman across from him continuously tried to strike up a conversation with him, but mostly he just wanted to be left alone. He was able to get a name from her at least—Priscilla—but the hours still dragged on for him.

"—just the worst!"

Two days after Keiran visited him, Daunte was startled by the loud complaining occurring outside his window. He climbed up onto his bed and grabbed the bars over the small windows to pull himself up. Outside he could see that it was still morning, and he saw two-uniformed soldiers standing three meters away arguing.

"Look, I'm just following orders," the soldier on Daunte's left said tersely. "I'm not going to the Sheikh to make demands about guard rotation, Hamal. You're off the schedule for another week, so just take the time to recuperate."

"I'm fully healed!" Hamal argued. "I swear to Nagar that my injuries from the battle are healed! I passed my physical and I've been cleared to return to work! Please, let me come back! I can't afford to take any more time off from work!"

"Hamal, the schedule is final. Unless you can find someone willing to give up their shifts to you, I'm afraid my hands are tied."

"But—"

But the soldier simply shook his head at Hamal and turned to walk away. Hamal watched him go, and he trembled with fury. "Damn it!" he cursed. He punched his own thigh in frustration. "If I don't get back to work and get a paycheck, I'll be short for my bills this month!" he continued to grumble as he stormed away.

Daunte lowered himself down and sat down on the bed. _So he was injured during the battle against the Liberation Army? I…don't know how to feel about his predicament._

Lanny brought him his food and continued to smart-mouth him. When he brought Daunte his lunch later on that same day, he set the tray down and promptly stole hale of Daunte's sandwich and bolted back up the stairs. It was very clear to Daunte that Lanny did not like him, but Daunte said nothing and ate what was left of his lunch.

 _It's okay. I've faced much worse than a kid antagonizing me._

"—what are you doing here, then!"

"I told you I have no choice!"

Daunte paused in eating and looked over his shoulder. He could hear talking from outside his window once again. Curious against his will, he set aside his tray and rose up once more. He was startled to find two pairs of boots so close to his window that he could smell the mud on them. He drew back slightly, but still hung onto the bars.

"So you left your wife with a healer while she was going through contractions?" one soldier said. "Why would you report for your shift if she's about to give birth?"

"I-It was too short notice to call in for my shift," the soldier to Daunte's left said shakily. "I've already received a warning for tardiness. I don't want to risk receiving corporal punishment—and possibly being demoted. I won't help my family if that happens."

"So you choose to not be there for the birth of your firstborn child? Don't you think your priorities are kind of askew?"

"Look, my wife said it was okay for me to come in—"

"And you believed her?"

"I would do _anything_ to be at her side right at this moment! But unless you know of anyone who could cover my shift on such short notice, I'm stuck! _Do_ you know anyone?!"

"I…uh…" the second guard faltered.

"There, you see? So unless you have a means to make this situation better for me, don't criticize me!"

Daunte hesitated. This reminded him strongly of the argument he'd heard just that morning. He wondered if he should tell this soldier about the other's dilemma, or he should remain silent because of the fact that he was a prisoner.

After a moment, he cleared his throat. "E-Excuse me."

"Huh?!" both soldiers jump slightly. "W-What was that?!"

"Down here," Daunte called up to them.

"You!" the first soldier snapped, kneeling down to his level. "How dare you speak to us, heathen?! Get back in your cell!" he grabbed at Daunte's hands, trying to peel them off the bars.

"I-I know how to help you!" Daunte choked out, squeezing his palms to hold on.

"Help me?" the father-to-be quickly knelt down. "What do you mean?"

"Aw, don't listen to him!" the other soldier scolded. "He's just trying to stir up trouble!"

"T-There's another soldier looking to pick up shifts," Daunts said quickly. "His name is Hamal, and he was out in that yard just this morn—" he lost his grip and tumbled backwards onto his bed.

"Hamal," the father-to-be said. He jumped to his feet. "I know who that is. I-I'm going to go find him right now!"

"In the middle of your shift?" his companion said, standing up.

"Do I have any other choice? If I can get someone to cover my shift, I can head straight home to my wife!" he took off without another word.

The other soldier watched him leave in silence before he knelt back down and pressed his covered face to Daunte's window. "Hey, you."

"Y-Yes?" Daunte scrambled off the bed and stood up.

"Why would you help him like that? You're our enemy."

Daunte shrugged stiffly, debating if he should smart-mouth the soldier, be silent, or be honest. Finally he said, "I-It felt like the right thing to do."

The soldier stared at him for a long moment. He seemed genuinely surprised by Daunte's gesture. After that moment he rose back to his feet and walked away.

Daunte let out the breath he hadn't realize he'd been holding in. _I…I DID help him, didn't I? Even though we're enemies. But he's still a person, and he should be with his family._

The thought however made his heart clench and he hugged himself. _I want to go home, too. But where is home anymore?_

* * *

The following day wasn't any better for Daunte, even as he heard something uplifting outside.

"Hamal, what are you doing? You're not scheduled for today!"

"Of course I am. I swapped shifted with Rale for the next few days. Said he needed to be home for the birth of his child."

"Oh wow, his wife gave birth?! Good for him! Do you know if it was a boy or girl?"

"I heard it was a boy. But I also heard his wife needed a cesarean because the baby was facing sideways."

" _Sideways_?!"

"Yeah. I guess it was a good thing I was able to switch shifts with him so quickly because he made it back in time to get that news."

"Thank Nagar for that!"

Daunte managed a smile at that. _So his wife and baby are okay. That's good._

"Here's breakfast."

Daunte slowly rose to his feet as Lanny appeared. Per usual the guard delivered Priscilla her tray while Lanny delivered his. The boy glared at Daunte as he faced the bars. " _Enjoy_ ," he said sardonically, and promptly dropped the tray. It didn't hit the floor this time, but it _did_ hit the tray stand with a loud 'clang'. Daunte jumped at the sound, as did Priscilla and the other guard. Everything spilled over onto the tray, creating a mess.

Lanny looked at Daunte challengingly, but Daunte said nothing. He calmly slid the tray towards himself and carefully balanced it and set it on the floor. His meal wasn't a total loss, but everything that _had_ been dry food was sopping wet. Daunte bristled inwardly, but still he said nothing.

Priscilla, however, wasn't silent and huffed at Lanny. "Don't you think you've taken this too far? That poor boy has done nothing to you, and yet you treat him like garbage."

"Hasn't done anything?" Lanny echoed. He quickly turned to face Priscilla. " _Hasn't done anything_?! You know nothing! This _heathen_ killed my brothers and sisters! My soldiers-in-arms! Do you have _any_ idea how many families have lost fathers, mothers, brothers and sisters because people like this decided to wage war against my country?! All the funerals we've conducted, the grieving families, everything—none of this would be happening if it weren't for people like him!" Lanny turned to glare at Daunte. "You—some spoiled punk who doesn't have a clue about how the real world works! This _mild_ discomfort I've given you _pales_ in comparison to the pain you've already inflicted!" he laughed hollowly. "You probably don't even know what true suffering is!"

Daunte was speechless. The emotional pain Lanny barked at him ripped through him. He understood where Lanny was coming from. He may have taken a stand against the Theocracy, but even he understood that even the vilest person had a family who loved them.

But he…he also understood true suffering. It was probably what inspired to say, "I was at the Dark Chasm."

Lanny eyes went wide, and Priscilla sucked in a sharp breath. Daunte stiffened as he realized his mistake. _He's going to figure me out, and then he's going to report it to the Sheikh!_

Lanny moved in closer until he was standing right in front of the bars. "What did you say?" he asked in a small voice.

Daunte gulped audibly, and hugged his arms. "I…I'm sorry," he said instead of answering, looking Lanny in the eyes. "I'm sorry for the soldiers you lost. B-But I'm sure you realize we were acting in self-defense during that battle. Your Army ambushed us—"

"And _your_ Army was advancing upon this Garrison anyways!" Lanny shot back. "So _we_ were acting in self-defense too!"

Daunte closed his eyes and took a deep breath. It came out shaky. "I know. And I'm sorry. I know that I've caused a great of pain to the families of the soldiers you've lost, and I know my words won't make things better. But I _am_ sorry, Lanny."

Daunte slowly opened his eyes to look at the young soldier. Lanny was still looking at him with shock. Without another word, he turned and slowly headed up the stairs.

"What a mature boy you are, Daunte," Priscilla called out praises to him. "It's nice to see such a nice young boy in such a hostile environment."

Daunte said nothing to her. He walked back over to his bed and sat down. He lowered his hands and looked at the back of his right hand.

 _He knows now, and that means the Sheikh will figure me out. I don't know if the Liberation Army will come for me, but I know I can't stay here. I must escape._

* * *

Thanks to his anxiety, the day dragged on even longer. Surprisingly the soldier on guard duty said nothing to Daunte about his confession about being a Dark Chasm escapee, but Daunte knew that _he_ didn't need to say anything. Lanny would surely do all the talking for him.

Priscilla once again tried to strike up conversations with him, but Daunte wasn't in the mood to talk. He was on edge and couldn't relax. Whenever he heard footsteps approach he would start to hyperventilate, expecting the Sheikh to come down there to question him. To ask to see his hand.

Yet…nothing happened. Lanny came down two more times to deliver their lunch and supper, and the boy said nothing to Daunte. He no longer antagonized Daunte, but he didn't look Daunte in the eye, either. His behavior wasn't reassuring at all.

Night had fallen, and Daunte tried to distract himself by getting ready for bed. But he was too high-strung on emotions to even feel tired, and ended up simply making and unmaking his bed. As the guard lit torches, another soldier hurried down to them and whispered quickly to the guard. The guard stiffened and both ran back upstairs. Daunte watched them go, and swallowed a hard lump in his throat.

 _I need to go. I need to go!_

He tugged on his cell door, trying to find a structural weakness, but the door barely budge. Then he went over to the window and tried tugging on the bars. All that succeeded in him doing was losing his grip and falling backward, hitting the bed but bouncing and landing hard on the stone floor.

"Sweetheart, what are you doing?" Priscilla called from her cell.

Daunte lay there on the floor, stunned from the sudden impact. The intense pain however served to quickly fill him with rage and he shouted in anger. He stood up and turned over his bed. In the far corner he saw a crate, and he quickly turned that over. He turned to find something else to lash out at, but stilled when he felt a sudden brush of air behind him. He quickly turned around and knelt down. Because of how dark the prison cells were he couldn't see anything in this corner, so he reached out with his hands and touched the wall. He felt the damp, stone wall and rubbed his fingers against them until they encountered something different.

It felt like… _bars_.

Daunte blinked once, and then twice. Yes, it was definitely bars underneath his fingers. He slid his hands around the bars and tugged slightly. His heart jumped as the bars moved. They seemed to _slide_ on hinges. He pulled a little further up, and saw that he was lifting the bars all the way up until they were horizontal to the ground.

Daunte held it open and dipped his hands underneath the grate. The removal of the bars created an opening that was barely twenty-five centimeters tall. But he was certain that it was large enough for him to squeeze through.

 _I don't know why a grate like this is in a prison cell, but I'm not looking a gift horse in the mouth. I'm leaving._


	23. Chapter Three: Part Two

Part Two

"Daunte?" Priscilla held the bars of her cell between her hands and looked towards Daunte's cell worriedly. "Daunte, are you okay?"

Daunte held up the grate as best as he could and pressed himself flat into the floor. He began to wiggle through the opening. Though his time away from the Dark Chasm allowed for him to get a healthier appearance, he was still rather skinny. Still, he felt the walls around him tear at his clothes as he pushed himself through. He moved carefully and kept his breathing even, and he listened for the sounds of anyone approaching.

Thankfully, the guard still hadn't returned by the time Daunte managed to squeeze himself completely through.

"You're out!" Priscilla almost shouted, but then she slapped a hand over her mouth. "You're out!" she hissed as Daunte approached her cell. "You have to get me out of here, _please_!"

"Check the corner," Daunte said as he tugged on the door to her cell. Like his own door hers wasn't budging. "There might be a grate in the corner you can squeeze through."

Priscilla nodded and disappeared into the darkness of her cell. Daunte watched the stairs warily, very much aware of the seconds ticking by. _He was called away for a reason. Maybe there's a meeting going on? Hopefully I can get out while everyone is distracted._

"Daunte!" he nearly jumped out of his skin as Priscilla came back to the door. Her violet eyes were wide with alarm. "Daunte, I don't have a grate or anything in my cell! I searched all the corners and didn't find anything!"

Daunte looked at her for a long moment, and then looked towards the stairs. "I…"

"Don't leave me here!" Priscilla reached through the bars with both hands and grabbed fistfuls of Daunte's vest. "You can't leave me here, you _can't_! Please promise me you won't leave me here!"

Daunte was alarmed by the fear in her voice and her expression. For someone who'd spent the last few days acting carefree and nonchalant, Priscilla now looked scared out of her mind and on the verge of tears. Daunte swallowed thickly, and nodded. "L-Let me see if I can try and break the lock, okay?"

"Thank you, thank you!" Priscilla let him go and stepped back. "Please hurry!"

Unfortunately, Daunte didn't have time to ponder over the lock. He started looking closely at it when the sound of voices at the top of the stairs startled them both. "Get back to your cell! Hurry!" Priscilla hissed at him.

Daunte didn't need to be told twice. He ran back to the grate and banged his head on the bars as he pushed himself through. He felt the walls dig into his sides even more this time, but didn't pay any attention to it. He managed to pull his feet inside when he heard footsteps descending the stairs. He shoved the crate back in front of the grate, and hastily reset his overturn bed. He flinched as two shadows crossed in front of one of the torches, and Daunte looked up. He breathed out a sigh of relief as he recognized their guard and a second soldier, neither of which gave him a second glance.

No, their focus was on Priscilla.

"I'm here with an important announcement for the _harlot_ ," the second soldier announced tartly.

"That's me," Priscilla said, returning to her nonchalant demeanor.

Daunte stilled. _Harlot? And those scarlet robes…don't tell me…_

"I'm here to deliver your sentence from Mlkwt Alsmwat," the soldier continued. He unrolled a length of parchment and held it up high. "Priscilla, you have been tried and found guilty of your sin."

" _Tried_?!" Priscilla said incredulously. For a moment she looked stunned. Then she snapped a sultry smile on and leaned suggestively against the bars. "My dear, I have not had a trial nor have I been allowed to face my accusers. So how could I have been found guilty?"

"As per our Holy Decree, your sentence has been determined that is fitting of your crime."

All of the color drained from Priscilla's beautiful face. She took one step back away from the bars, and then another. Her hands raised very slightly, defensively.

"Per your judgment your punishment will be carried out here, in a week's time." The soldier looked up and rolled the parchment back up. "It is customary that an accused that has been sentenced by Holy Decree may ask for clemency from the Cabinet of High Clerics."

Priscilla immediately perked up, but the soldier continued. "But as you are not a Nagarist believer, or even a _citizen_ of Nagarea, you are not allowed to ask for clemency." Without another word, the soldier turned and marched back upstairs. The guard looked at Priscilla awkwardly for a long moment before hurrying upstairs.

Daunte watched Priscilla approach the bars in silence, looking back up the stairs from where the soldier came from. Finally she turned her body away and slammed her back against the bars. She ducked her head.

Daunte leaned his forehead against the bars of his cell. "A…Are you okay?"

"I should've never come to this country," Priscilla said flatly. "I should've never gone on that isolated fishing trip…"

"S-So you really aren't from Nagarea?" Daunte asked her.

Priscilla slowly looked upwards towards the ceiling. "…No. I'm from north of here. A lovely little island called Gaian, and a lovely city named Razril. My whole life was in that one city, and I just threw it all away. Everything. And for what, for this?" she gestured at her cell. "What on earth was I thinking?"

"What happened to you?" Daunte asked her. "What happened that caused you to end up here? I-I saw you in Baltas, you know. You seemed to have been living a very comfortable life, and yet now you're a criminal? What…" he hesitated before gathering up his nerve. "W-What did you do?"

Priscilla still didn't look at him, and she stood there in her cell in her silence for a long time. Daunte wondered if she was going to answer him at all when he finally received a response.

"I committed adultery, dear boy. And I've received the sentence adulterers and adulteresses get."

Daunte gasped in horror, and gripped the bars tighter. By law, adultery was a crime punishable by death as it was deemed that while Nagar thrived on war, adultery caused "unnecessary" battles and was a betrayal of trust. Infidelity of any kind was strictly prohibited.

And anyone sentenced for adultery was _burned alive_. Per the Holy Decree they had corrupted their bodies with their sin and needed to be cleansed. Nothing cleansed better than fire, it would seem. So Priscilla would…

 _They're going to ship me out of here within a week. And Priscilla is going to be executed within a week._ Daunte looked in the direction of the grate. _We need to get out of here before that happens._

* * *

"I've brought breakfast."

Daunte looked up. Priscilla was understandably less talkative this morning, and didn't approach the bars when the guard brought over her tray. "I'm not hungry," she called out from inside her cell. "Someone else can have my breakfast."

"You'll become sick if you don't eat," Lanny told her, but stiffened as though remembering he wasn't supposed to be conversing with her.

"That's the least of my worries," Priscilla responded, without a note of irony in her tone.

Daunte stood up as Lanny approached _his_ cell. He was fully expecting Lanny to drop his tray once more, or for him to shout insults at him.

What he _wasn't_ expecting was for Lanny to greet him with a friendly smile. "Good morning." He carefully set the tray down.

Daunte looked between the tray and Lanny. This was…strange. Why was Lanny being nice to him all of a sudden? _Did he poison my breakfast?_

"Aren't you going to take it?" Lanny asked him, gesturing to the tray.

"You can't blame the poor boy for being skeptical of your sudden formalities," Priscilla said from her cell.

Daunte accepted the tray and sat down on the floor. He pondered over the tray for a moment when Lanny spoke up. "Is it true?"

Daunte looked up. "Is what true?"

"There was a soldier who needed to get home and tend to his wife and baby, but he didn't know anyone who could cover his shifts," Lanny said. "But there's a rumor going around that _you_ had told the soldier who he should ask to cover his shifts. His shifts got covered, and he was able to go home. Was it you?"

Daunte blinked slowly. Is _this_ why Lanny had a sudden change of attitude? He didn't know if he should remain silent or tell the truth, but he ultimately decided to speak up. "It was nothing." He shrugged slightly. "I'd heard another soldier complain about not being able to get enough shifts, so when this soldier was worried about getting home I just told him who to talk to."

"But why would you do that?" Lanny asked him. "You're our prisoner, and yet you helped two of our soldiers? How come?"

"…I don't know," Daunte answered honestly. "It just seemed like the right thing to do."

Lanny pondered over his statement for a long before he nodded and smiled again. "I knew it."

"K-Knew what?" a hard lump suddenly formed in Daunte's throat. _Does he mean—?!_

"When you apologized yesterday for killing our soldiers, I didn't believe you," Lanny explained. "But, I also thought you were telling the truth. Then when I started hearing these rumors…" he shrugged. "Now I know you meant your apology. We all had this idea about what kind of person you are, but it looks like we were wrong. It's a shame we're on opposing sides."

"Oh." Daunte relaxed slightly. Lanny wasn't bringing up the fact that Daunte had slipped about being from the Dark Chasm. "Okay. Thank you."

"Now, now, that won't do," Priscilla suddenly spoke up, approaching her bars. "Young man, you owe Daunte an apology for the way you've been bullying him."

Lanny flushed and glared at Priscilla. "Mind your own business!"

"What? You've done nothing but make his time here miserable. And all because you misjudged him. Admitting that you're wrong isn't enough, you need to apologize."

"You're not my mother or the Sheikh so you have no right to order me around!"

Priscilla sighed in disappointment and looked away. "Children are so mean-spirited, aren't they?" the guard snorted with laughter, but quickly sobered up when Lanny glared at him.

"Attention!"

Both Lanny and the guard snapped to attention. Daunte scrambled to his feet as he recognized the Sheikh and Mihr coming down the stairs. "Leave us," the Sheikh commanded.

"Yes, Sir." Lanny and the guard saluted and hurried up the stairs. Keiran watched them leave before turning to address Daunte. "I'm here to report to you that I have still not received any ransom demands from the Liberation Army for you."

Daunte didn't expect any, considering the Army had been crushed by the Theocracy's Army. But Keiran continued. "It's really quite surprising, Daunte. After all, the Liberation Army has the resources to commit raids on Uaminifu and even Tenaga for weapons and supplies. And there's a persistent rumor floating around that Bearyl Lutis dipped his hands in the Army's savings to bribe a bunch of Sheikh Sloan Faakhir's soldiers into turning on the Theocracy." Keiran paused before continuing. "Though in all honesties, Lutis _needn't_ have paid them after the Sheikh's disgraceful treatment of the men and women under his command during the battle. He's not had a shortage of deserters.

"What I'm saying, Daunte, is that the Army _is_ capable of trying to save you. Either through a ransom offer or even a rescue attempt. Yet they have done nothing. It appears that they have abandoned you to your fate."

Daunte turned away from him. Keiran Umed was blatantly trying to manipulate him…wasn't he? Granted, _he_ didn't consider himself useful enough to warrant a rescue but…

 _It…Bribing soldiers to join the Army_ _ **does**_ _sound like something Bearyl Lutis would do. And I know the Army committed raids on cities even before I joined. I'm glad they weren't annihilated…but has nobody really sent for me?_

It was truly an internal struggle. Daunte didn't want anyone to risk their lives to save him. At the same time, however, he didn't want to feel like he'd been abandoned to die. He imagined he had even a _minimal_ amount of value because of the Rune of Restoration, but has nobody really tried to come for him? Not Gunther or Allise or even Varnaz?

 _The Sheikh may be lying, but I would've definitely noticed if somebody attempted a raid on this Garrison. The commotion would've been undeniable. Yet there's been…nothing?_

"There is no shame in giving up people who have already given up on you," Keiran told him. "I don't relish the idea of sending you to your death, Daunte. If you give me what I need, then I will pull any strings to ensure you don't get executed. Does that sound fair?"

Daunte swallowed thickly, but shook his head. He turned to glare defiantly at the Sheikh. "I don't know where the Liberation Army is. And even I did, I would never tell you where they are. I would never do that to my friends."

The Sheikh closed his eyes and shook his head. "Your pride is going to be the death of you. What a waste." He turned to walk away from Daunte, but not to leave. Instead he walked deeper into the prison and stopped in front of Priscilla's cell. "Lady Priscilla."

Priscilla had retreated deeper into her cell with the arrival of the Sheikh, and did not answer him when he spoke to her. "I see you received the news of your sentence."

"Yes, it was delivered to me last night." Priscilla laughed, but it was a hollow sound. "How very kind of your government to condemn me without a trial."

"A trial would seem unnecessary when you are guilty of the crime, would it not?" Keiran asked her.

"That is hardly the point."

"Very true."

Priscilla hissed slightly, as though in shock. It was obvious she didn't expect the Sheikh to agree with her. Keiran continued. "I wanted to also inform you that your lover will _not_ face the same sentence as you. I regret to inform you, however, that he escaped execution by taking a plea deal and testifying against you."

"…I see." Priscilla's voice became so soft and small that Daunte almost didn't hear her.

"I will speak freely," Keiran said suddenly. "I do not agree with the sentence against you, my Lady. And quite frankly I believe that man to be a coward not suited for his position of office. However it is my responsibility to carry out your execution, and I am compelled to follow this order. Were it up to me I would've simply deported you back to the Islands Nation Federation, but as it is my hands are tied. You have my sympathies."

Priscilla said nothing to him. "Your sentence will be carried out this coming Wednesday. And as for you." He turned to address Daunte. "An armed escort will be here the day after tomorrow to take you to the capital. You should've expected my offer when you still had the chance." He walked back up the stairs without another word, Mihr trailing behind him.

Daunte leaned against the bars and watched him go. Now alone, he heard Priscilla call out to him softly and he turned to look at her. She said nothing more, but he saw the fear and sorrow in her bloodshot eyes. Daunte said nothing either, but nodded his understanding.

 _We need to leave. Tonight._

* * *

Night fell, and Daunte and Priscilla were eating their supper in silence when there was a sudden shout.

"Get the gate! There's an envoy from Mlkwt Alsmwat!"

Daunte jumped, and quickly looked to the window. _T-They came for me already?!_

There were running footsteps in every direction. The guard watching them abandoned his post and ran upstairs. Once his shadow was out of sight, Priscilla pressed her face to the bars. "Daunte!"

Daunte was already crawling through the grate and was outside his cell. He watched the stairs carefully before racing to Priscilla's cell. Unfortunately, it was still tightly locked. "D-Don't you know how to pick locks?!" Priscilla pleaded with him.

"No," Daunte said, tugging on the door. "And even if I did, I don't have the tools on me!"

"L-Look in the drawer!" Priscilla gestured to the guard's desk. "There might be a spare!"

Daunte didn't waste time, and within seconds had pulled out all the drawers and frantically looked through them. Priscilla was hopping up and down in her cell, watching the stairs and watching Daunte look.

After looking the desk thoroughly, Daunte looked up. "I can't find a key."

"But there must be one in there!" Priscilla insisted. She wrung a hand through her hair. "Oh…what am I going to do?"

Daunte slammed the drawers shut and hurried over to her cell. "Listen to me. I-I'm going to leave and try and find an escape rou—"

"Don't leave me here!" Priscilla almost shouted. "If you leave me here I _swear_ I'll haunt you for the rest of your life!"

Daunte certainly didn't want to abandon her to her fate of being burned alive, but he knew he was short on time and didn't even know his way around the Garrison. "Look," he said calmly. "I-I'm just going to look around for an escape route but I promise you I'll be back. When I come back I'll wait for the guard to come back and then I'll knock him out. Then I'll steal his keys and we'll get out of here together. Does that sound fair?"

Priscilla nodded jerkily. "Just please remember to come back for me!"

"Don't worry, I will." Daunte managed a smile. "I mean, if I leave you here then I'll have your ghost to contend with forever!"

Priscilla laughed slightly, and shoved at his arm through the bars. "Just hurry and come back before the guard does!"

Daunte nodded to this but still was careful as he crept up the stairs. He could hear voices from upstairs, but he stopped on the top step. There was a long, stony corridor directly in front of him. He heard loud conversations coming from behind closed doors on either side of him, but he saw no shadows dancing over the walls. He only hesitated for a moment longer before he took off running. He had precious few moments to find an escape route, and then beat the guard back to the prison cells in time to knock _him_ out and then free Priscilla.

 _Then we'll both be out of here. I don't know where the Liberation Army is, but I'll find them!_

Daunte saw two soldiers round the corner, and he quickly ducked into a room without thinking. To his relief the room was empty, and he held his breath as he listened for the guards to walk on by. They did so, without pausing in their conversation, and entered the room next to Daunte's.

Daunte let out the breath he was holding in and looked more thoroughly at the room he was in. It was empty except for shelves lining the walls, and two item boxes at the back of the room. He hurried over to one and found a medicinal herb. Since his pockets were empty he was glad for the healing item.

The item in the second chest, however, puzzled him.

"' _The Three Little Pigs'_?" he read the title aloud. This book was styled like _'Beauty and the Beast'_ , and it was similarly secured with tightly wounded string. "This must be another play. Ah well…" He stuffed the play into his waistband and quickly left the room.

As he rounded the corner he saw a _large_ group of soldiers gathered further down the hallway and he ducked into another door to his right, and the night air suddenly swept into his face.

He was outside.

Daunte quickly hid behind a barrel, but nobody seemed to notice. At least nobody would hopefully _see_ him because of how dark it was. He slowly crept out from behind the barrel, and examined his surroundings. He saw a large gate twenty meters away, but the gate's double doors were closed and there were guards posted on either side of it. It was fairly obvious he wouldn't be able to leave through the front door, but since the gates were closed it also meant that the envoy from the capital was already on the premises.

 _Okay. So since_ _ **that's**_ _the front gate I know I'm in the front courtyard._

Daunte kept to the shadows as he crept along. From his position he only saw roughly a dozen soldiers in the front courtyard, and all of them were in either groups of two or three. Daunte saw several doors leading into the main building of the Garrison, but his eyes caught sight of a flight of stone stairs along the Garrison walls.

 _That will hopefully lead me up onto the battlements. I should definitely be able to find an escape route up there!_

Even though the soldiers around him weren't exactly patrolling at the moment, Daunte still kept low as he raced up the stairs. He rounded up another short flight of stairs and did indeed find himself on the battlements. Much like in the yard the soldiers up there weren't patrolling; instead he could blatantly see three soldiers bent over a crate playing a card game just ten meters away. They didn't see Daunte, but Daunte still pressed himself into the wall behind him. He looked skyward and didn't see the moon. _Oh, good. Tonight must be the new moon. I'll be able to sneak around easier if I don't need to hide from the moonlight._

Daunte looked over the side of the battlements to the ground below. He estimated that the Garrison walls were at least fifteen meters high, and although he saw some skinny bushes below he knew if Priscilla and him jumped from the battlements it would still be a long way to the ground.

 _I'm sure Priscilla wouldn't care how far she would have to fall, so long as she got out of here._ Daunte straightened, and nodded to himself. _Okay, so I'll go and get Priscilla after I get the keys from the guard. Since they haven't sounded the alarm about my disappearance I know he hasn't returned yet. Then we'll come up here and jump. And…I guess we'll just have to aim for the bushes._

"—looks furious, doesn't he?"

"I don't know why, though."

Daunte stiffened, and looked towards the stairs he'd just come up. Two soldiers were coming up! He panicked, and ducked into the door beside him. He inadvertently slammed the door shut, and his heartrate accelerated. There was no way they didn't notice that!

"Oh, hey! There you guys are!"

Daunte slowly crept to the window and looked outside back onto the battlements. If the two soldiers had noticed his commotion, they didn't seem to care. They were rushing towards the soldiers playing cards, as though to join them.

Daunte let out his breath slowly and looked around the room. It was a simple room with a table and chairs, and he found an item chest in one corner. Unable to help himself, he checked the box and found another small box. The words _'Sound set 6'_ were stamped onto the lid.

 _Another sound set? Liron will be thrilled when I bring this back to her!_ _…If I survive this, that is._

"What you are asking of me is impossible!"

This sudden shout startled Daunte. He looked towards the door on the opposite side of the room. He could see how luminescent the room was from the light coming from underneath the door. The light however flickered, as though shadows were crossing in front of it.

"I think you're misunderstanding us, Sheikh Umed," an unfamiliar male voice answered. "This isn't a suggestion. This is an _order_ straight from the Cabinet of High Clerics, and you _will_ follow this order."

"How _dare_ you speak to me this way?!" Keiran barked at him. Daunte was unsettled by the anger and frustration in the Sheikh's voice. He'd never heard Keiran use any sort of tone other than cool and calm. "You—some glorified _priest_ who's had everything handed to you through scheming and murder! You have no authority to give me any orders!"

"Oh? That's a lofty attitude coming from _you,_ Umed—"

"You will address him by his proper title, Cleric!" Mihr's voice suddenly snapped.

"…As I was saying, I think this lecture coming from you is very hypocritical. After all, _you've_ had everything handed to you, including your _Sheikh_ title."

"I've worked hard for this position!" Keiran objected. "I've made my provinces very profitable, and there is a reason my provinces rank within the top three places to live in Nagarea! What exactly have _you_ contributed to the betterment of this country, Lažov?!"

Daunte stiffened. _Lažov?! That last name…wasn't Varnaz's brother-in-law named Lažov?_

" _I_ have made many great sacrifices for this country, Umed," Lažov replied. Daunte flinched as he heard Mihr snarl with outrage at the Cleric's continued disrespect of Keiran. "After all, it wasn't exactly easy for me bring adultery charges against my late first wife—"

"And yet you remarried rather quickly, didn't you?! Was Lady Bara's poor, burnt body even chilled before you tied the knot with _your_ mistress?!"

" _That_ is a libelous accusation that I hope you are prepared to support!"

"Gentlemen."

Daunte recognized _this_ voice, and a cold stab of fear filled his body. _Oh no. It's_ _ **her**_ _…_

"I have better things to do than watch the both of you try to emasculate each other. Sheikh Umed, while the Cabinet of High Clerics appreciates the sacrifices you've made for Nagarea, Cleric Lažov _is_ delivering you an order and you _will_ follow it."

"My Lady, I cannot do such a deplorable thing!" Keiran protested. "There is no honor in committing something so heinous!"

"Are you refusing my order, Sheikh Keiran Umed?"

"Absolutely! I will not do such a thing!"

"Then consider your _Sheikh_ Title forfeit."

"…What?"

Daunte was also shocked by this proclamation. _She's threatening to_ _ **fire**_ _him?_

"Y-You would really do such a thing?" Keiran asked softly. His tone had dipped to become much softer. "After everything I've given to Nagarea, you would dismiss me just like that?"

"Absolutely. Do you think we would allow you to simply defy our authority again?"

"Again?!"

"Princess Kaylani, Sir. The only reason she was taken from us so easily is because _you_ refused to take custody of her."

"S-She was pregnant! She was blatantly close to her due date! I-I-I couldn't take a pregnant woman hostage!"

"Our operation against Falena failed due in part to _your_ inaction, Keiran. The Cabinet gave you a pass _because_ of what you've done for this country, but they will not give you a pass again. You _will_ commence this operation, or you will be relieved of your command."

"And _I_ will be promoted in your place," Lažov said smugly. "And I'll say right now that _I'm_ not afraid of following orders!"

"It wouldn't surprise me," Keiran said harshly. "After all _you're_ single-handedly responsible for the deaths of your first wife and her family! Cowardly scum like you is _never_ afraid to get innocent blood on their hands!"

"Why you—"

" _Enough_." The Matron interrupted once more. "As I stated, Keiran, you will lead this operation or else Cleric Lažov has already been handpicked to be your replacement and _all_ of your soldiers will have to follow him."

"I won't follow this spineless blowhard," Mihr objected harshly.

"Insubordination against a superior officer is an offense punishable by death, Mihr. Keiran Umed may receive special treatment from the Theocracy due to his title and lineage, but a _foreigner_ like you is not guaranteed the same protections."

"My Lady, you can say whatever you want to me, but I will not stand by and allow you to threaten my soldiers!"

"They will not be your soldiers much longer if you do not comply with us, Keiran."

Daunte didn't want to hear any more. He knew whatever Lažov and the Matron were demanding of Keiran _had_ to be bad if the Sheikh was objecting so strongly, but he knew that since the Matron was there that he _definitely_ had to get out of there.

 _At least I know a way out._ He peeked outside onto the battlements and saw that the group around the card players had grown _larger_. But he also saw that there were less people in the yard below and quickly ran down the stairs. _I'll just grab Priscilla and get out of here. I definitely need to leave before that woman realizes that I'm here._

* * *

She felt a twitched in her right hand and quickly looked over her shoulder at the closed door to her left. _That sensation…_

"My Lady Matron, is there anything else we should address?" Cleric Ramiro Lažov asked her.

She turned to look at him. Ramiro Lažov was a man in his mid-forties and was a typical boot-licking suck-up that she deeply despised. But he was serving a purpose here and so she did not roll her eyes at him while she turned to address Keiran. "I wanted to ask you about your battle with the Liberation Army."

"I submitted my full report last week," Keiran answered her. He was still in uniform but had removed his hood, revealing an incredibly handsome face. His good looks however had no effect on her. "When I received the information about the Army's headquarters, I send requests to both Sheikh Faakhir and Sheikh Nuori for assistance. Both Sheikh's were critical in securing our victory, and I'm grateful to them for it."

"Did you encounter a teenage boy using a True Rune?" she asked him. "It is the Rune of Restoration, parent rune to the Resurrection Rune."

"Resurrection Rune?" Keiran looked at Mihr. "I'm only vaguely familiar with the Rune but it can restore life, correct?"

"In a way, yes," Mihr answered him.

"Then I saw no such thing," Keiran said, turning to look back at the Matron. "Whoever the True Rune user is, they didn't use it to revive their fallen comrades."

"But did you see its healing effects?"

"My Lady, there were dozens of healing spells being thrown around during the battle. All of them looked the same to me after a while. I hope you'll accept my apologies, but my priority during the battle was to defeat the Liberation Army, not look for the True Rune user."

"Then you have forgotten our first priority—to find and kill the boy with the True Rune so the High Clerics can possess it."

Keiran flushed slightly and looked away. "…My apologies, my Lady."

"Well, it can be certain that the boy will turn up once you commence this operation."

Keiran quickly stood up. "My Lady—"

"And as I said, you will do this or we promote someone who will."

"And I _will_ do it," Lažov quipped.

"That will be all." She didn't bother waiting for Keiran's reply. She swept out of the room, leaving Keiran and Mihr gaping after her. She noticed that Lažov delayed in following her. He probably hung back to taunt the Sheikh and his second-in-command.

 _Well, at least Lažov is so predictable that he'll be easy to control._

Lažov caught up to her on the battlements. "My Lady, I hope you realize that he's not going to go through with it."

"That is not for your to decide," she said sharply to him. "We will see what he does. Keiran Umed is a smart man, and he will know to follow this order."

 _I know I sensed it. Is that boy somewhere around here? Keiran said that he didn't encounter him on the battlefield. Maybe he's using the Rune right at this moment? What a waste for such a child to yield such power…_

* * *

Lažov _did_ hang back to hurl more insults at Keiran, but Keiran wasn't paying attention. After the Cleric ran after the Matron, Keiran collapsed back into his seat. He rested his elbows on the table and pressed the heels of his hands hard over his eyes.

Silence remained in the room before Mihr slowly took a seat at the table beside Keiran. "What are you going to do?" he asked Keiran softly. "Are you going to follow this order?"

A hard lump formed in Keiran's throat. He didn't look up, and he swallowed thickly. But the lump was still there as he spoke softly in reply. "Do I have any other choice?"


	24. Chapter Three: Part Three

Part Three

"You came back!" Priscilla cried out with relief as Daunte came running back down the stairs. "Did you find a way out for us?"

"Yes," Daunte told her. He looked down the short hallway for a place to hide for when the guard came back. "It'll require us to jump off the battlements, if that's okay with you."

Priscilla scoffed, but then laughed. "I don't care if I shatter both of my ankles if it means I don't have to be burned alive!"

"Hopefully the guard will come back any moment," Daunte said, moving to take cover in the shadows. "Then I can—"

He was abruptly interrupted by multiple voices at the top of the stairs. He heard their guard but it wasn't the only voice.

"—the only option we have."

 _That's the Sheikh!_

Daunte hurried to Priscilla's cell and tried to futilely tug on the door. But once again the door didn't budge. A sudden thought came to him. "Stand back," he told Priscilla, who immediately jumped back.

Daunte raised his right hand and pressed it to the lock. _Rune of Restoration. I know your powers are to restore and heal, but I know the Resurrection Rune has an offensive spell. Which means_ _ **you**_ _have a defensive spell. Please destroy this lock so I can Priscilla out of here!_

A moment passed, and then another. Nothing happened. Daunte glared at his hand. _I know you're sentient, but can't you just do this for me?! Do you know what will happen to her if I don't get her out?!_

The True Rune didn't respond to him, nor did it respond to his heightening emotions. Daunte snarled, and slammed an open palm against the door. The Rune still didn't respond. " _Damn you_!" he shouted at his right hand, startling Priscilla.

" _Berate."_

Daunte jerked back and rubbed at both of his ears. That familiar whisper tickled his ears and absorbed into his mind. It was a whisper so soft that he couldn't tell if it was a male or female voice.

 _This happened before, didn't it? When we were escaping from the Dark Chasm?_

"Oh."

Daunte jumped at this proclamation and turned around. His jaw hung open at the four individuals standing at the opening of the prison. He recognized their guard, and he recognized Lanny and Mihr. He _didn't_ recognize the man standing front and center. He wasn't wearing a hood.

"This is interesting," the man said, and Daunte's stomach twisted. He recognized the voice, however—this was _Keiran_. "How did you get out of your cell, Daunte?"

Daunte clicked his jaw shut briefly, but mere seconds later it hung open again. He thought he was going to be sick. _I screwed this up. I can't believe how much I screwed this up! Now Priscilla is going to die, and I…_ he ducked his head.

"Well, this saves us some time," Keiran said. He gestured to the guard, who stepped forward. Daunte flinched away from him, until he noticed the guard was holding some familiar objects. He recognized his satchel…and his _tekko_.

 _W-Wait, they're letting me go?!_

"I have very little time to explain, so I'll cut to the chase," Keiran said. "You need to find the Liberation Army, Daunte, and you need to mobilize them."

Daunte's head snapped back up as he shrugged on his satchel. "W…What?"

"I've been given new orders," Keiran told him. "Tomorrow night I'm to march my soldiers towards the city of Uaminifu. It will take us three days to reach the city, and we are to remain out of uniform."

"O-Out of uniform?" Daunte echoed. "What for?"

"Because I have been ordered to massacre the entire city."

"W-WHAT?!" Daunte shouted. Priscilla also shouted in shock, and pressed a hand to her throat in horror.

"As I've defied the Theocracy in the past, I've been backed into a corner. Either _I_ lead this…charge, or I will be relieved of my command and they'll institute a boot-licking worm unworthy of the _Sheikh_ title, in my place who will still lead my soldiers on this horrendous mission." Keiran opened his hands. "So as it stands, I'm in command of this mission."

"W-Why would you agree to such a thing?!" Priscilla demanded. "I thought you were better than that! This would make you no different and no better than Sheikh Faakhir!"

"I already told you why I'm leading this mission," Keiran responded calmly. "Because this mission is going to commence no matter _who_ is in charge. And if anyone is going to lead _my_ soldiers, it's going to be me."

Daunte swallowed thickly and clutched the strap of his satchel. "W…Why is the Theocracy moving to destroy Uaminifu? I-Isn't Uaminifu the religious epicenter of Nagarea? They have the second-highest number of clerics behind Mlkwt Alsmwat, but they're also have the most devoted Nagarist believers. What exactly are you people gaining by killing them all?"

Keiran shrugged stiffly. "It's because of those reasons that they've been chosen for slaughter. We've been ordered to dress in civilian clothes and not our Army uniforms because the Cabinet of High Clerics believes it'll be easier to blame this massacre on the Liberation Army. If the most loyal believers are all killed by the Liberation Army, it will further turn the people of Nagarea against the Liberation Army."

"T-That's ridiculous!" Daunte shouted. "You guys _won_ that campaign against the Liberation Army! As you've told me we suffered heavy losses! If we're still on the lam, why is the Theocracy making such a despicable move against its own people?!"

"Your guess is as good as mine, but this is where you come in Daunte."

"…How so?"

"Simple: you need to get back to the Liberation Army and warn them about the massacre. Lanny here will be your escort to ensure you reach your headquarters without interference." Lanny stepped forward, and Daunte noticed for the first time that he had a sword strapped to his hip. "Then whatever forces the Liberation Army has must mobilize and head us off at Uaminifu. We will clash with you in a nonlethal manner, and after a period of time elapses I will concede defeat and order my soldiers to withdraw."

Daunte gaped at him for a long moment. _He…He_ _ **wants**_ _us to stop him? Did the Theocracy really order him to slaughter the entire city of Uaminifu? W-What if this is a trap to expose the whereabouts of the new headquarters?!_

He finally voiced his concerns. "W…Why are you going to such lengths? How do I know this isn't a trap?"

"I'm going to such lengths because I don't want to commit mass murder on unarmed civilians who have done nothing wrong," Keiran said. "But as I said, if I didn't agree to do this mission then you would be dealing with a new Sheikh who has no problem committing such atrocities. So you need to get back to the Liberation Army and have them _stop_ us. Understood?"

Daunte nodded jerkily, but his stomach was still in knots. He had no idea where the Liberation Army may have fled, even though Keiran obviously didn't believe him in that regard. _How am I supposed to help stop this if I don't know where the Liberation Army is?!_ "I—"

"I think this poor boy will need help."

Daunte looked at Priscilla. The others slowly turned to look at her in her cell as well. "If you'll recall, Daunte has already said he doesn't know where the Liberation Army is," Priscilla reminded them. "But as it so happens… _I_ know where they are."

Daunte let out a short breath and a measure of relief flooded through him. _We're saved!_

But Keiran didn't look so convinced. "My Lady, how exactly do you know the current whereabouts of the Liberation Army?"

"How do you _think_ I know?" Priscilla asked back. Her tone had turned suggested and she batted her eyelashes playfully at him.

Lanny made a face at her, but Keiran didn't stir. "If you know where the Army is, tell me right now."

"Ah, ah," Priscilla said, shaking her finger at him. "I would be a fool to tell you now! I'll _show_ these two boys where the headquarters instead."

"I can compel you to tell me."

"Oh, but that's not your style, Sheikh Keiran Umed. If it was, then I'm fairly certain Daunte here would've already been laid out after being "interrogated" by you."

She was making a valid point, and Daunte could see that Keiran knew it. After a moment he gestured to the guard. "Release her."

Priscilla squealed as the guard unlocked the door to her cell. "I'm not entirely sure if you're telling the truth," Keiran continued. "But I'm compelled to trust you with this. You're very lucky that the manner of execution selected for you will be easy to cover up."

"Nobody is going to be executed in my place, will they?" Priscilla asked fearfully.

"Of course not. But we will still stage your execution after… _this_ to give the illusion that we've carried out your sentence. But you had better prove yourself useful to Lanny, my Lady."

"Oh, I will. You can count on me."

Keiran turned his attention back to Daunte. "It is imperative that you convince Bearyl Lutis to send the bulk of the Army to Uaminifu. There _has_ to be enough soldiers for us to engage with in order to convince the High Clerics that my soldiers were overwhelmed. Otherwise they will not believe me and they will simply send my soldiers back out with another Sheikh to follow through with this."

"D-Don't worry," Daunte said, raising his hands slightly. "I'll tell Lord Bearyl how important this is, and I-I'm sure he'll listen to me."

Keiran's expression told Daunte that he wasn't as optimistic. "We have horses ready, so ride out now."

"Wait a moment," Priscilla spoke up. "I'm going to need a weapon too. I used to serve in the Islands Nation Federation Navy, so I'm pretty savvy with a sword."

Keiran looked at her. "What type of sword do you generally use?" his tone suggested he didn't necessary believe her.

Priscilla smiled and planted her hands on her hips. "Do you have a jian in your armory? I'm most comfortable with that sword."

A flicker of surprise crossed Keiran's face, and Daunte was also surprised. Priscilla had a rather _dainty_ appearance, so it was surprising to hear her be familiar with swords. "…I will see if we can accommodate you."

* * *

They _did_ find a jian in the armory, and Priscilla did a few test swings with the sword that were very impressive. Ultimately she swooped down and took the tiger stance with the sword before effortlessly sliding back up into a standing position. "Thank you, gentlemen. It's been _forever_ since I've held a jian. It makes me homesick."

"Please hurry and find the Liberation Army," Keiran told them. "You're the only one who can stop this madness."

Daunte nodded, and moments later they departed the Garrison and were riding out onto the open road. They rode due west until the Garrison faded onto the horizon, and then Lanny abruptly raised his hands. They brought their horses to a stop and formed a circle.

"All right," Lanny said curtly, turning his horse towards Priscilla. "Where is the Liberation Army?"

Priscilla shrugged. "I have no idea."

"W- _What_?!" Lanny shrieked in outrage. Daunte wasn't nearly so surprise, but he definitely felt a twinge of disappointment in the core of his being. _So we're basically riding blind now?_

"My dear boy, I've been sentenced to death," Priscilla address Lanny as though he were a child. "I was willing to say or do _anything_ to get out of it." she laughed lightly. "I didn't expect it to work, but I can't complain about the outcome."

Lanny swore violently, and unsheathed a nimcha sword. He pointed the tip at Priscilla's beautiful face. "We're going back to the Garrison _now_!"

"Are we now?" Priscilla said. She swatted his blade away and pulled out her jian. "I don't want to hurt you, Lanny, but I'm not going to be burned alive. I'm not going back."

"Guys!" Daunte shouted, seeing a stampede of boars charging towards them. The horses began bucking in panic.

"This isn't over!" Lanny snapped, but he jumped off his horse to engage the boars.

"You won't win this," Priscilla said, also jumping off her horse to join the fight.

It was a short fight, but Daunte was amazed by both Lanny and Priscilla's combat skills. Priscilla moved very quickly and even _gracefully_ at times while she was swinging her jian. Lanny likewise assumed the _in no kamae_ stance and had a more tranquil demeanor. Daunte was both impressed and envious of their skills.

 _I need to do better._

But after the boars were taking care of, Lanny rounded upon Priscilla once more. "You will disarm _now_."

"Please don't make me hurt you," Priscilla said in a rather pleading tone. "I'm very fond of you."

"Guys," Daunte said, inserting himself between the two of them. "We don't have time for this. Remember that we have to avert a city-wide massacre before it's too late!"

"And how are we supposed to do that when _neither_ of you knows where the Liberation Army is?!" Lanny barked at him.

"Then we'll simply go back to where the headquarters used to be," Daunte told him. "There must be some clues there."

"If there were, then our soldiers would've found them! We practically knocked all the walls down searching for any leads, and didn't find one!"

Daunte gaped at him for a long moment of silence before speaking again. "You…You guys _destroyed_ the headquarters?"

Lanny shrugged unapologetically. "The castle was falling apart anyways."

Daunte quickly shook his head, trying to ignore the unease he was feeling. _They must have gotten away. Lanny said that they couldn't find any leads, right? So I_ _ **know**_ _that Arin, Roen, Felicity, and everybody else got away!_

"W-We'll still start there," Daunte said finally. "With any luck they didn't go far."

Lanny snorted. "If they were smart they would've disbanded entirely, but given who your leader is I wouldn't be surprised if they were still hiding in the same general area."

Daunte ignored his spite and climbed back onto his horse. "Lead the way, then."

"Huh?" Lanny looked at him with confusion.

"Zander told you guys where our headquarters was, right? So you should know the way."

Lanny flushed and stammered for a moment. "Y-You lead the way! It's your headquarters!"

"…You don't know where the Liberation Army headquarters is?"

"Oh, did you skip that debriefing Lanny?" Priscilla asked him from her horse. She 'tsked' at him. "What will the Sheikh say if he knew you weren't paying attention to your orders?"

"I'm a squire!" Lanny snapped at her. "So I naturally wouldn't be told where it is! I just follow my commanding officer!"

"If you're not supposed to know, then how come the Sheikh didn't debrief you about the location of the headquarters? I very much doubt this would be something that would slip his mind, Lanny. Perhaps then you _are_ supposed to know where it is, hmm?"

Lanny's face turned even darker red and swung back onto his horse. "Lead the way," he told Daunte authoritatively. "We're wasting time here chit-chatting."

Daunte nodded and turned his horse around when Priscilla suddenly called out his name. He turned to face her. "For what it's worth, you've played a big part in how I was able to get free. When we find the Liberation Army, you can consider me a new recruit."

"R-Really?" Daunte asked her.

Priscilla saluted him playfully. "I wouldn't very well side with the government who sentenced me to death, would I?"

"I'm not exactly surprised," Lanny huffed, shaking his head. "Heretics and traitors always fit well together!"

"Sweetheart, I had an affair with a married man," Priscilla said flippantly. "I may not be a good person, but I don't see how this personal flaw suddenly makes me an enemy of the country."

"You just pledged your loyalty to the _rebel army_!" Lanny shouted. "That makes you an enemy of Nagarea!"

"Uh, let's remember that we're short on time and need to keep moving," Daunte interjected. He looked at Priscilla. "I'd be glad to bring you on as a recruit, Priscilla."

Priscilla positively smiled at him. "Thank you."

Lanny rubbed a hand over his face in frustration. "You're both very lucky we have bigger things to worry about, or you'd both be under re-arrest for treason."

* * *

They rode west all night until dawn. Daunte himself didn't exactly know the location of the headquarters—he just knew that they had gone steadily east towards the Garrison before they were ambushed. So the headquarters had be steadily west…right?

The sun peaked over the horizon when Daunte found himself in a familiar location. But _not_ the location he was looking for.

"Where is this?" Priscilla asked, craning her neck as she looked at their surroundings. "This looks like a mountain range. Is the Liberation Army here?"

"This is the High Peak Mountains," Lanny said. He glared at Daunte. "You've taken us too far north! Is this is a joke to you?! If we don't find the Liberation Army in time, then who's going to stop us?!"

"Your Sheikh could always stop the massacre," Priscilla said softly.

"Don't you think he's tried to stop it?! If he didn't agree to do it, then they would've found somebody else to do it, or were you not listening when he explained that to you guys?!"

"You know, the more I look at things the more I think Liberation Army is looking better and better," Priscilla said thoughtfully.

"Of course _you_ would say that," Lanny said sardonically.

"Well thus far the Theocracy has ordered the wholescale slaughter of two towns, imprisons children in a mine for manual labor, and orders executions for just about anything," Priscilla pointed out to him. "Does that look like the sort of government you would want to follow, boy?"

"The Nagarist Order follows our Scriptures when designing the laws," Lanny told her. "Everything we do is in the name of Nagar and for the sake of the country!"

"Oh? Does Nagar endorse child abuse and the mass murder of His own believers?"

"You don't know anything!"

"I know enough that a government that frightens people into submission and _murders_ people who've done nothing wrong just to frame the opposing Army for the act, is not a government worth following or fighting for."

Lanny sputtered, and he grinded his teeth. Daunte saw him reach for his sword again and grabbed his arm. "Whoa, whoa! Enough of this, both of you! Yes, we've gone in the wrong direction but now I know exactly where we are! And I know how to get back to the headquarters from here!"

"You do?" Priscilla asked him. Lanny let out a harsh breath and pulled his arm free, but he didn't go for his sword again.

"Yes," Daunte said, though his tone dipped as dread filled his body. "But it's going to take us up to two days to reach there."

"Two _days_?!" Lanny hollered. He grabbed Daunte by his collar and wrung his neck. "You stupid bastard! How on earth did you lead us so off-course from riding all night that it's going to take us _two days_ to reach the headquarters?! And we don't even where the Army is! Do you realize what you've done?!"

"Hey, don't be so hard on him," Priscilla scolded him.

"And you!" Lanny let Daunte go and rounded upon Priscilla. "Lying about where the Army is! We've lost so much time because of you! Do you know what this means?! Eight-five thousand people are going to die because of you both!"

"Lanny, just calm down!" Daunte snapped finally, though the sickening feeling in his gut returned. "We all need to calm down and think clearly and rationally! I know we all want the same thing, and that is to avert this planned massacre against Uaminifu! But since we have little to no information, we don't have time to be arguing! We have to keep moving!"

"And how exactly do you propose we get to your headquarters in time to prevent this massacre?!" Lanny snapped. He suddenly looked stricken and grabbed at his own bangs behind his hood. "Oh Nagar…I'm going to be forced to kill innocent people!" he started hyperventilating.

Daunte honestly felt sorry for him. Even though they were enemies he knew Lanny had a strong sense of honor and didn't relish taking part in this heinous attack. He swallowed thickly and tried to remain calm. "It's going to be okay," he said calmly. "We just have to—"

"Ah-CHOO!"

All three of them shouted in surprise as a sudden flash of light burst from Daunte's right. Daunte turned his horse around and gaped in shock. Not even a second ago they were alone at the base of the High Peak Mountains. But now…

"Oh…" a black-haired teenaged girl dressed in white and clutching a long staff was holding a hand to her head and swaying back and forth where she stood. "That's strange…I feel like I've been asleep for ten years at least."

"Um," Daunte began.

The girl shrieked and turned around to face them. Her wide blue eyes went even wider when she saw them and she raced towards them. "You there! What country is this?"

"What…country?" Lanny echoed dubiously.

"That girl…she just appeared out of nowhere, didn't she?" Priscilla hissed at Daunte.

Daunte looked at Lanny and Priscilla and saw the confusion and mild fear in their faces before turning back to face the unknown girl. "T-This is the Nagarea Theocracy."

The girl made a face. "Ah…could you be a little more specific?"

"Specific?" Lanny asked. "He just answered your question."

"W-What I mean is—which Nagarea are you referring to?"

 _ **Which**_ _Nagarea?_ Daunte thought. _That doesn't make any sense!_

"You're on the Southern Continent, dear," Priscilla told the girl from her horse.

"Ah!" the girl spoke up. "So the first one!"

Everything she was saying made no sense to Daunte, so he leaned over his horse. "The first what? There's only one Nagarea."

"R-Really? What year is this?"

"IS 378."

"O-Oh! So I jumped ahead again! But I—" she groaned. "Now I remembered! I missed the party _again_! Why does this keep happening to me?!"

"…Are you okay?" Daunte asked uncertainly.

The girl suddenly perked up and positively smiled at him. "Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Viki, and I'm currently lost. If you wouldn't mind looking out for me, I will lend you my power!"

"Your power? What power do you have?"

"Here." Viki pushed back her sleeve and showed them the back of her right hand. Daunte saw a yellow Rune symbol there that looked like a shining light. "This is the Blinking Rune. With this I can teleport you to anywhere you've already visited."

" _T-Teleport_?!" Lanny cried out. He jumped off his horse and grabbed Viki by her shoulders, even though she was slightly taller than him. "M-M-My Lady, is your spell instantaneous?!"

"Oh absolutely," Viki said. "There's a chance of failure, but more often than not I can send you immediately to the place you desire to go!" she laughed girlishly. "Oh course, you don't have anything to worry about! I don't fail _that_ often!"

"T-Then, would you mind teleporting us to the Liberation Army headquarters?" Daunte asked her.

"If that's a place where you've previously been to, I can most certainly take you there!" Viki said reassuringly, nodding enthusiastically.

"You're being awfully helpful to us, and you don't even know our names," Priscilla said. "Do you have some sort of ulterior motive?"

"Oh no, not at all!" Viki shook her head. "I-I just wound up here accidentally, and I know nothing of this country's ways and culture! I would be in big trouble if I were by myself, so if you wouldn't mind having me I would gladly pledge my support to you!"

"As for our names, I'm Daunte," Daunte introduced himself. "This is Priscilla, and—"

"She doesn't need to know my name," Lanny interrupted. "We're not on the same side."

"But if you can take us where we need to go, then I would be grateful to you and I would ensure your safety," Daunte told her.

"O-Okay, everyone!" Viki announced. She raised her staff and spread her arms wide. "Envision in your mind exactly where you would like to go! Hold the image in your mind!"

Daunte closed his eyes and focused all of his energy on forming the image of the headquarters in his mind. If this worked, then they would hopefully find the necessary clues to find the Liberation Army.

"Here—we—go!"

Daunte felt a 'whoosh' of air around him and a bright light flashed in front of his eyelids. He opened his eyes, suddenly feeling dizzy, and grabbed the saddle's pommel to steady himself on the horse.

" _This_ is the place?"

Priscilla's surprised tone had Daunte open his eyes fully. The sight in front of him made him stiffen in horror.

They were indeed back at Liberation Army headquarters, but the castle had been reduced to rubble. The trees around them had been mostly flattened—the forest destroyed. Thankfully he saw no dead bodies strewn about, but he knew he could see dried blood on the stone and on the grass.

And he also knew it would be next to impossible to find _any_ clues about where the Army was in the debris.

"Is…Is this the right place?" Viki asked fearfully.

Daunte forced a smile down at her. "Yes, thank you."

"That was incredible!" Lanny was positively gushing. He leapt off his horse again and grabbed Viki by her hands. "My Lady, you must join the Holy Army! Your Blinking Rune would be most vital to us!"

"B-But I already pledged myself to Lord Daunte," Viki said. She gently pulled her hands free. "It would be rude to turn on him after he already promised to protect me!"

Lanny glared murderously at Daunte. "You have a knack for making things more and more difficult, don't you?"

Daunte shrugged.

"Well, that was interesting."

Lanny and Priscilla immediately unsheathed their swords at this new, unfamiliar voice. Daunte tensed as two figures emerged from what remained of the forest. He raised his fists as he recognized the robes of a Cleric on one of the people, while the second was dressed in a brown uniform with yellow lapels. Daunte could tell that both individuals were male, though the Cleric looked to be in his forties (and his piercing blue eyes definitely had an age to them) and the other man looked to be in his mid-twenties. He had a mellower demeanor and his tawny hair fell into his face and dark eyes.

Daunte coughed awkwardly. "A-Ah, can I help you both?"

"Are you with the Liberation Army?" the younger man asked bluntly.

"Not me," Lanny said quickly. "I'm escorting these two."

"I must find the Liberation Army," the Cleric said. "The Cabinet of High Clerics has plotted something heinous—"

"The massacre on Uaminifu?" Daunte asked him.

"Y-Yes. How did you know that?"

"Because you're not the only one trying to stop it," Lanny spoke up.

"T-Then allow me to introduce myself." The Cleric gestured to himself. "My name is Farzin Masood, a Cleric of Mlkwt Alsmwat. Or rather I _was_ a Cleric until three days ago, when the High Clerics _defrocked_ me for protesting this utterly insane resolution!"

"I'm Shou," the second man said, his tone still blunt. "I'm looking for Oboro."

"We met while on the road," Farzin explained. "He's not very sociable, but he brought me here without difficulty. Quite amazing, considering he snuck into Nagarea illegally."

"T-Then you've come to the right place," Daunte said. "We're with the Liberation Army, and Oboro is a member of the Army."

"Not really, considering the Liberation Army isn't even here," Shou said. "But that should change shortly."

"How so?"

"Because I sent up a signal. If Oboro is still alive and with the Liberation Army, then he should see my signal within a twenty kilometer radius."

"And if they're further away than twenty kilometers?" Lanny asked.

Shou shrugged. "Then they won't see it."

"Oh, is that what you're looking for?" Priscilla suddenly spoke up, pointing.

Daunte looked in the direction she was pointed in and squinted. On the horizon he saw something that was catching the sunlight. It was brief flashes of light, but very noticeable.

"That's it," Shou said. "The Liberation Army is that way."

"Then my task is completed," Lanny said. He turned towards Viki. "My Lady, can you teleport me back to Sheikh Keiran Umed's Garrison?"

"Sheikh Umed?!" Farzin sputtered. He yanked out a hardcover book and pointed it threateningly at Lanny. "He's the one who's leading the massacre!"

"And he's the one who sent us out to stop it," Lanny said irritably. "Just hurry up and get to the Liberation Army so the lot of you can intercept us!" he turned back to Viki. "So, can you teleport me?"

"Sure I can," Viki said. She raised her staff and spread her arms.

"W-Wait," Daunte said. He turned his horse towards Lanny. "Thank you for your help."

"Don't thank me, I didn't do this for you," Lanny told him. But he softened slightly. "Just…stop us, okay? Please stop us from committing the massacre."

"We will."

Seconds later Viki successfully teleported Lanny and his horse away. "There! He should be okay! …I think!"

"Then let's go," Farzin said. "The sooner we get to the Liberation Army, the sooner we can prevent the deaths of thousands of people."


	25. Chapter Three: Part Four

Part Four

"Shou? What are you doing here?"

Daunte and the others followed Shou towards the reply signal they had received. They traveled for only fifteen minutes when Oboro seemingly materialized out of thin air. And the older man didn't look pleased to see Shou.

Shou for his part didn't seem to notice. "There you are. Don't you know how long you've been away this time?"

"What are you doing here?" Oboro repeated himself. "I sincerely hope your parents didn't send you after me!"

"Nine years," Shou said, answering his own question. "We haven't seen a hair of you in _nine years_. No letters, no surprise visits, nothing. We'd thought you had died, old man! That's not a nice thing to do to your friends and family!"

"Have you spoken with Fuyo at all? I'm fairly certain she would've been more than happy to explain my reasons to you!"

Shou shrugged. "We've been worried out of our minds, so I said I would come after you and drag you home to prove to everybody that you were still alive."

Oboro shook his head and rubbed a hand over his face. "I'm currently in the middle of assisting the Liberation Army, so I can't come back with you yet. But I hope you're satisfied seeing me alive and well."

Shou looked at him for a long moment, and then looked at Daunte for another long moment. "…No. This won't do. If I return empty-handed, then I'll never hear the end of it."

"Shou—"

"So I'll just join this Army you've pledged yourself to."

"Eh?!" Oboro dropped his hand away from his face and gaped at the younger man. "W-Wait, what?!"

"I'm joining the Liberation Army," Shou said. "Then after they're victorious I'm dragging you home with me."

"Shou, your parents would never want you to join an Army like this!"

"Did it stop them from taking part in the Falenan Civil War?"

"Shou, you're a detective and not a killer! Have you ever even taken a life before?"

"Yes," Shou said bluntly. At Oboro's shocked expression Shou shrugged again. "It was a couple years ago. I killed a man in self-defense during a job. Mom and Dad were devastated that I took another's life, but what was I supposed to do? The other guy was bigger than me and he had a bigger weapon than me. I tried to simply disarm him and walk away, but then he came after me with his bare hands. If I didn't kill him, then he would've killed me. Would it have been better if I died?"

"Of course not! I…" Oboro shook his head and looked to Daunte. "If this is all right with you, would you mind accepting Shou's assistance? He's going to stay regardless, and I would never be able to face his parents if anything happened to him."

"You're acting like I'm a child, when I'm _older_ than he is!" Shou jabbed a thumb at Daunte. But he still turned to address Daunte. "Consider me hired, my Lord."

"O-Okay, thank you," Daunte said, bowing slightly.

"While this family reunion is heartwarming, we're wasting time here," Farzin spoke up. "Where is Bearyl Lutis? We have a crisis to advert!"

"Lord Bearyl is meeting with his other generals," Oboro said. "They were planning to—" he abruptly cut off as he took in the party in front of him for the first time. When his eyes fell upon Viki, they widened in shock and his jaw hung open.

"O-Oh, hello," Viki said, bowing. "We've surely met before, haven't we?"

"…Quite," Oboro said at length. He quickly shook his head and gestured to Daunte. "Come. We've all been concerned for you, Lord Daunte, so everyone will be pleased to see you."

Less than an hour later they were at the new Liberation Army headquarters. It was nothing more than a war camp. Dozens of tents spread out before Daunte, though he saw far more sleeping bags lined it. A couple of meters away he saw Clara tending to the wounded, but Daunte was disheartened by how many people were wounded. The young doctor clearly looked overwhelmed, but did not falter in her task.

"DAUNTE!"

He jumped at this shout and slid off his heart. Emotions surged through him as he caught sight of Arin rushing towards him. He met his little brother halfway and crushed him in a hug. "Big Brother, you're alive! I thought I would never see you again!"

 _Me too._ But Daunte didn't say it out loud and instead clung to Arin tightly.

"Daunte!" Two bodies slammed into him on either side of his body, hugging him tightly. It took him a moment to realize that it was Roen and Felicity. It was surreal seeing his two best friends again and he found himself fighting back tears. "Daunte, you're alive!" Felicity shouted.

"Man, we thought the worst had happened to you!" Roen said, laughing wheezily. "Bearyl Lutis wasn't doing anything to help you, and we were just about to go and save you ourselves!"

Daunte stiffened at this proclamation. "…Lord Bearyl wasn't going to help me?"

Roen jerked, and looked away. "I…uh…"

"Never mind that," Felicity said quickly, helping him to stand. "You're back, and that's all that mat—"

"Lord Bearyl was too busy spending Army funds bribing soldiers to turn traitor!" Arin snapped suddenly. "We've been petitioning him for _days_ to do something for you, but he considered you a lost cause! I can't believe he just ditched you like that after what you did to save General Varnaz!" he grabbed for Daunte's hand. "Are you okay? Are you really okay?"

"Y-Yes," Daunte said shakily. The news Arin had just given him made him feel sick to his stomach. "I was captured by Sheikh Umed."

Felicity breathed out a sigh of relief and pressed a hand over her heart. "Thank Nagar it wasn't Sheikh Faakhir!"

"Can you please take me to see Bearyl Lutis?" Farzin suddenly stepped forward. "We have an emergency on our hands."

"An emergency?" Roen asked. "Well, Lord Bearyl's tent is all the way in the back." He gestured in that direction. "They're planning something right now so all the generals and lieutenants are there."

"You guys should come too," Daunte said, referring to Priscilla, Shou, and Viki. "Since you're new recruits you should meet our leader."

"From what I've just heard he sounds like a swell guy," Shou said sarcastically.

"We'll come with you," Felicity spoke up.

"Yes," Arin said, squeezing his hand tighter. "I want to stay by your side, Big Brother!"

"O-Okay," Daunte said. He turned to head in the direction of Bearyl's tent, but was stunned to find himself surrounded by soldiers and civilians.

"You're alive!"

"We heard what happened! We'd thought you had died!"

"Did you sell us out to the Holy Army?"

"General Varnaz has been so quiet lately. He isn't happy but he's not getting angry either. I think he's been upset about what happened during the battle!"

"Are you going to go see Lord Bearyl? While you're there, can you tell him we've run out of shoes? If he has the money to bribe soldiers into turning traitor, then he can somehow smuggle us in some new shoes!"

This continued as the group headed towards the back of the camp. Daunte was very relieved to see Cairoh and Gusoku still operating their businesses, and he also caught sight of Tidur in front of a large tent with a sign with a bed image on it. Liron ran over to give him a hug, and he saw Sharon sitting with Suna, feeding the young dragon some ray meat. And in between some tents he saw Desiree doing stretches.

 _Good. It looks like everyone who I recruited made it out alive._

Two meters from Bearyl's tent the man himself came out, undoubtedly to see what all the commotion was about. He went rigid when he saw Daunte, and…it was strange. It looked like a shadow fell over his face, and he frowned deeply. Daunte was startled by his expression, and stopped briefly.

Then Bearyl broke out into a smile and surged forward towards him. Daunte, you're alive!" he shook Daunte's hand vigorously. "You gave us quite a scare! We had no idea what happened to you!"

Roen grumbled under his breath, but Daunte forced a smile as the people around them silenced. "Thank you, Lord Bearyl."

"Here, come inside. I'm sure you have a lot to tell me."

Daunte was surprised by how nice Bearyl was acting, and followed the Liberation Army leader inside. His entourage followed.

"Daunte!" Gunther shouted, jumping to his feet. Allise said nothing but sprang from her chair and ran over to give Daunte a hug. Gunther came over and slapped Daunte on the shoulder, laughing heartily. "I swear you have the devil's luck! You have no idea how glad I am to see you!"

"Well, well," Caesar said, smiling his usual lazy smile as he looked up from the map on the large table. "You're a pleasant surprise, Daunte.

"Thank you." Daunte looked around the room and caught sight of Varnaz. The Lieutenant General had fresh scar on his cheek, forming a pale line on his dark skin, but the older man looked stricken. He swallowed thickly, and looked as though he wanted to say something, but then slowly closed his mouth.

"This is very curious," Bearyl said, walking over to stand beside Caesar at the table. His expression no longer looked friendly. "We've been planning our biggest campaign to date, and right on the cusp of initiating our plan you suddenly appear out of nowhere? That seems too much like a coincidence."

Daunte gaped at him. _Was…Is he implying I sold the Liberation Army out?!_

"Lord Bearyl Lutis," Farzin spoke up, quickly coming forward. "I am Cleric Farzin Masood. Or rather, _ex_ -Cleric. I've come here to give you very grave news."

"Farzin," Allise sputtered, turning to the Cleric. Her eyes were wide. "T-This is quite unexpected!"

Farzin looked at her, and familiarity flickered briefly in his eyes. "Lady Allise, it's been a long time. How are you?"

"Much better after you granted me a divorce."

"Divorce?!" Gunther exclaimed. "Y-You were the one who gave Allise her divorce from the Sheikh?!"

"Of course," Farzin said. "Technically per Holy Decree you have to petition the Cabinet of High Clerics to get a divorce. But there was a loophole in the law which stipulated that anyone of a Clerical rank could sign off on annulments. I was the only one who figured that out, and…" he shrugged. "It's quite surprising how much money I made authorizing speedy divorces."

"Then we're happy to have you here!" Gunther greeted, shaking his hand. Allise rolled her eyes.

"Hmm," Priscilla said softly. "Maybe you were defrocked for more than taking a stance against the High Clerics?"

"So what brings you here, Farzin?" Bearyl asked him.

"I'll cut right to the chase: the Cabinet of High Clerics has ordered Sheikh Umed to massacre all the citizens of Uaminifu."

Gasps of horror and outrage filled the tent. " _Sheikh Umed_ agreed to participate in this?!" Allise snapped. "That's completely out of character for him to do!"

"Uaminifu is full of religious zealots who believe _anything_ the High Clerics say to the public!" Gunther also objected. "Why on earth would they want to kill a city full of their most faithful and _loyal_ supporters?!"

"It's true, though," Daunte said. "I heard the order be given to Sheikh Umed. He agreed to do it because he was threatened with dismissal if he didn't."

"Of _course_ he would care about keeping power," Varnaz snapped. Surprisingly, Bearyl didn't look moved by this news.

"He was told that if he didn't do this that they would find somebody who would be more than happy to do it," Daunte said. He stepped forward, lowering his tone. "General Varnaz, he—Cleric Ramiro Lažov was selected to be Keiran Umed's replacement if Umed didn't do this."

Varnaz's eyes went wide, and the color drained from his face. The tent abruptly silenced at hearing this news. Varnaz said nothing, but he suddenly looked fatigued. He slowly sat down in a chair and looked at the floor. It was obvious he needed a moment to take this news in.

 _But he needed to know this. He needed to know that the man responsible for the murders of his sister and the rest of his family is a candidate to become Sheikh._

"The massacre is scheduled for the day after tomorrow," Farzin said. "You need to get every able-bodied man and woman out there to defend the city from this onslaught."

"There _won't_ be an onslaught if we all go," Daunte added hastily. "Sheikh Umed swore to me that if our entire force arrives there he will engage us in a nonlethal manner and then sound the retreat. So all we have to do is pretend to fight the Sheikh's soldiers in order to convince the Cabinet of High Clerics that we "overwhelmed" them."

Caesar nodded to this and looked at Bearyl. "What do you think, my Lord? I believe we can trust the Sheikh to not commit full-scale murder on unarmed civilians, and even upon ourselves."

Bearyl's answer was immediate…and completely unexpected. "We don't have time for this."

Everyone gaped at the Liberation Army leader, who pointed to a figure on the map. "The day after tomorrow the Cabinet of High Clerics goes on recess. That means three-quarters of them will not be in Mlkwt Alsmwat, and many soldiers will also be leaving the city to escort the High Clerics to wherever they want to go. It's a prime opportunity to launch a campaign of Mlkwt Alsmwat and take over the city. By the end of the week the war will be over and I will have assumed power. We're never going to get an opportunity like this again, so we must stay on course and not be distracted by anything else."

Caesar had also looked stunned by Bearyl's proclamation. But before he could say anything Farzin surged forward. "Bearyl Lutis, are you going to abandon the citizens of Uaminifu to their deaths?!"

"Everyone you all have described to me sounds like a carefully placed trap," Bearyl said curtly. "I don't believe for one minute that Keiran Umed will massacre an entire city. Didn't he refuse to take custody of Princess Kaylani because of her pregnancy? A man of that caliber wouldn't slaughter innocent people."

"But I just told you," Daunte said harshly. "I told you he was threatened into doing this! He's been backed into a corner by the _exact thing_ you just brought up! He cannot defy the High Clerics again so he's being forced to do this! If we don't intercept him then he'll have no choice _but_ to kill the people of Uaminifu!"

"And if I send our soldiers out to Uaminifu instead of the capital, then the High Clerics will close ranks and fortify the city," Bearyl snapped back at him. "We will never get such an easy opportunity to for a coup again! If I don't end the war as soon as possible, then even _more_ people than the population of Uaminifu is going to die!"

"My Lord," Gunther said, stepping forward. "If I may—"

"If your opinion meant anything to me, Gunther, then I would've asked for it."

The insult clearly hurt Gunther, and Daunte's anger only rose.

"Everyone," Caesar suddenly announced. "If you would excuse us—"

"No," Bearyl snapped, rounding upon his strategist. "Whatever you have to say, say it now in front of our allies! I won't allow you to use the cover of darkness to hide your insubordination, Caesar!"

Bearyl's public insult of his own strategist caused a stirring of discomfort amongst the people in the tent. Caesar, however, looked unmoved by it. "Well then, I shall point out to you that we do not know entirely for certain if the High Clerics are indeed going to go on recess the day after tomorrow. This is only an assumption due to the fact that that specific date is when they always go on recess. However, given to the fact that they've ordered the slaughter of a city, we have to consider the possibility that they probably aren't going to go on recess until _after_ the fact."

Bearyl similarly looked unmoved. "And why would they go on recess after the massacre? It would only look more suspicious if they did!"

"But our intelligence has still not confirmed whether—"

"Caesar I know the politics of this country better than you, and I _know_ the High Clerics better than you. There is nothing that will stop them from going on recess on that specific day, so we must act quickly! Farzin." He looked at the ex-Cleric. "Are the High Clerics still going on recess?!"

"I honestly don't know," Farzin said hotly. "It wasn't a topic of discussion while I was trying to stonewall their efforts!"

"Still, this is an opportunity we mustn't squander!"

"So you're condemning an entire city to die because you're so sure you're right?" Shou asked.

"Who said that?!" Bearyl hollered. Daunte looked over his shoulder but saw that Shou had slipped out of the tent. "This discussion is over! We're not deviating from my plan!"

"What about Uaminifu?!" Farzin shouted. He punched the table hard. "That's eighty-five thousand people! _Eighty-five thousand people_ are going to die!"

"And like I said," Bearyl said, obnoxiously enunciating his words. "Even more people than that will die if we don't end this war. My soldiers have already lost so much—I won't allow them to lose more over a city full of brainwashed religious zealots."

Farzin's face turned purple from rage. Daunte was almost certain that the ex-Cleric would attack Bearyl. His own anger was simmering out of control, but he remained in control and stepped forward. "Lord Bearyl, I request that you allow me to lead a small campaign to Uaminifu."

"Denied," Bearyl retorted. "We need everyone—and I mean _everyone_ —for this mission. So go and get ready for the siege, Daunte."

His callousness finally caused Daunte to lose his temper. "I've scarified so much for this Army!" he shouted. "I've been loyal to this Army and I've been loyal to you! Even after I found out you were more concerned about _buying_ out soldiers than to even attempt a rescue operation for me, I held strong and didn't betray you! But when I look at you now, I don't know why I even bothered! You're a pompous, selfish _hypocrite_ who doesn't give a damn about anyone but your own self-interests! You act like you're this saintly liberator, but what the hell have you even done that's liberating?! You abandoned Agameru to its fate, you refuse to do _anything_ for the Dark Chasm, and now you're abandoning Uaminifu to its fate! I'd say that you're no better than the Cabinet of High Clerics, but I think you're actually _worse_ than those ex-assassins!"

His only warning was Bearyl launching himself across the table at him. The next thing Daunte knew he was flat on his back in the dirt and everyone around him was moving and shouting. Both Varnaz and Gunther were physically restraining Bearyl, who was screaming with so much rage that he was almost frothing at the mouth. Arin was almost on the verge of tears and Roen and Oboro carefully helped Daunte to his feet.

Daunte however, didn't get angry and only saw irony in this situation. _Well I shoved him down before, and now he shoved_ _ **me**_ _down. I guess we're even._

"You _son of a bitch_!" Bearyl was hollering, shoving Gunther and Varnaz away from him. "You don't know anything about me! About all the sacrifices _I've_ had to make for the good of this country! An immature little boy like you could never understand what I've suffered, and how hard I've worked to make things better! _Everything_ I have done has been for the sake of Nagarea!"

"But you're still going to abandon an entire city to die, my Lord," Priscilla pointed out. "No matter what you've done or feel, you must realize how this looks to the rest of us."

Bearyl looked her over, taking in her scarlet robe, and scoffed. "As if I need a cheap whore giving me a lecture!"

"Don't talk about her like that!" Daunte growled at him.

"AH!" Caesar shouted suddenly. His eyes and mouth went wide. "Ah…ah, ah, ah!" he pointed with a trembling finger. Daunte turned to follow where he was pointing, and the crowd parted to see what—or who—he was pointing at.

Viki stared back at him with confusion. "Ah…yes?"

" _Viki_!" he shouted, surging forward. He clasped her hands tight in his. "You're here! When did you get here?!"

"A-Ah, just a few hours ago," Viki said, laughing slightly. "You seem familiar to me. Who are you, again?"

Caesar laughed at the question, and released her hands. "Don't you remember me? We fought in the Second Fire Bringer War together three years ago!"

Recognition lit up across Viki's face. "O-Oh! Now I remember you! You're a Silverberg! I've known many Silverbergs!"

"I remember you too," Oboro said suddenly. He was looking at Viki thoughtfully. "We fought together during the Falenan Civil War."

Daunte gaped in shock at Oboro. _The_ _ **Falenan Civil War**_ _?! Wasn't that twenty-eight years ago?!_ He looked at Viki, who barely looked older than him. _Wait…does she have a True Rune too?!_

"Yes, yes, and she's also a veteran of the Islands Federation War," Caesar said quickly, taking Viki by the hand and pulling her to the front of the group.

"So that _was_ her?" Oboro said, more to himself than anything else. "Huh. I'd thought it was an ancestor of hers."

"My Lord," Caesar announced, directing Viki to stand in front of Bearyl. "This is Viki, and she will be able to solve _all_ of our problems."

"How so?" Bearyl asked unconvincingly. "I will?" Viki asked at the same time.

"She's in possession of the Blinking Rune, which is a very rare Rune," Caesar told him. "Its power is instant teleportation."

"Really?!" Bearyl exclaimed. "By Nagar! She could teleport the entire Army straight to Mlkwt Alsmwat right this minute! We could seize the city and end the war by tonight!"

"I don't think that's wise, considering the High Clerics are still within city limits."

"…Right." Bearyl deflated slightly, but not by much. "But this is truly a blessing! We could ambush _any_ Army with her at our disposal!"

"Precisely, which is why I think we should send her to Uaminifu to evacuate the city."

"…What?" Bearyl asked flatly.

"W-Wait a minute," Viki said, turning around to face Caesar. "I-I know that my Blinking Rune seems very powerful, but there's a limit to that power! I can't simply teleport hundreds of people at once! That would require a degree of concentration that I'm not capable of!"

"Yes you are," Caesar countered.

"No, I'm not!"

"Viki, you _are_ capable!" he leaned in close to her face. "I've done my research, and I know it was really you who participated in the Islands Federation War! I know you are capable transporting _entire fleets_ across the seas! If you can teleport multiple vessels filled with people safely, you can teleport the people of this town safely! I have faith in you!"

"I…uh…" Viki looked at Daunte over her shoulder. "I-I-I'm really not as great as he says I am. Would you still trust me to do this task? M-My magic might backfire."

"Not to worry," Caesar said, straightening. "I'll find you some nose plugs to wear during the campaign so the chances of your Rune backfiring will decrease significantly."

But Viki was still looking at him expectantly. Daunte coughed awkwardly. "I-I believe you can do it, Viki."

Viki looked a little scared but she slowly nodded and turned around. "I-I'll try my best."

"That's the spirit!" Caesar cheered.

"Now hold on a minute!" Bearyl snapped. "I think all of you are forgetting who's in charge here! _I'M_ the leader of the Liberation Army, and all of you are under my command! And I've told you we're not wasting our time on Uaminifu! We're going to march on the capital and we're going to win!"

"B-But can't we take Viki to Uaminifu _now_?" Daunte pleaded. "We'll evacuate the city a-and we'll be back _before_ the siege!"

"That sounds even better," Caesar said. "We could teleport to Uaminifu right this minute, and—"

"Everyone, _shut up_!" Bearyl hollered. The tent immediately fell silent. "This is my decision and MY decision alone! We're going to Mlkwt Alsmwat and ONLY to Mlkwt Alsmwat! We need to take this opportunity to end this damned war! Viki, I'm not going to waste your Blinking Rune on a bunch of idiot zealots who couldn't even tie their shoes if the High Clerics didn't know how to show them! You're going to use your Rune to teleport my Army to Mlkwt Alsmwat, and that's _all_ you're going to use it for!"

"My Lord," Allise said, stepping forward. "My Lord, how are you going to be an inspirational leader to Nagarea if you allow the people you're claiming to protect to die?"

"And what kind of inspirational leader would I be if I didn't do absolutely everything that I can to ensure our victory and to ensure that _we_ don't lose any more lives on the road to victory?!"

"You know what?" Farzin spoke up, raising his hands. "The hell with this and the hell with _you_ , Bearyl Lutis. I'll go to Uaminifu myself to try and stop this."

"You'll probably be thrown in prison," Gunther pointed out. "And then you'll be slaughtered along with the rest of the city!"

"I don't care," Farzin said savagely. "I'm still going to try. And I'd rather die trying to help those people than stay here feeding _your_ ego." He jabbed a finger at Bearyl before storming out of the tent.

"Varnaz, see to it that he never comes back," Bearyl snapped, returning to the table. "Now, to get back to the task at hand—"

"No."

Bearyl stiffened at this, and Daunte's jaw dropped in shock. Varnaz stepped forward, regarding his best friend with a chilling glare. "My Lord, I joined this Army to fight injustice. To get justice for my family. To rebuild our country in such a way that nobody else has to suffer what I suffered. I made the choice to follow you and abandon the people of Agameru to their fate. It was a mistake, and I'm _not_ going to make that mistake again. I'm going to take my soldiers and defend Uaminifu. With or without your permission."

Bearyl was struck speechless by Varnaz's defiance, and even Daunte was shocked. _He…He's not a yes-man to Bearyl anymore?_ But he also remembered how Bearyl recklessly sent him on a mission and then abandoned him to die. Varnaz _obviously_ didn't forget that, either.

 _It makes me wonder WHY Bearyl is still leader, when everyone disagrees with his decisions. But I guess…I guess they don't know who should take his place._

"…Everyone, leave us," Bearyl said finally, looking away from Varnaz. His voice had become small and quiet. "Caesar and Varnaz, you both stay. The rest of you get out."

* * *

Tensions ran high in the camp after Daunte and the others left Bearyl's tent. The soldiers and civilians had undoubtedly heard the loud arguing from Bearyl's tent, and while Bearyl had his share of defenders, the census across camp was overwhelmingly _against_ his idea.

"—can't just abandon them!"

"Must we storm the capital now?!"

"How do we even know the High Clerics are going on recess? What if this is a trap to bait us?"

"—can't believe Sheikh Umed would really agree to massacre an entire city!"

"But how on earth can we possibly coordinate an evacuation of a city with a population of nearly _ninety-thousand_ people?!"

"Arin was telling the truth before," Roen said quietly. They were sitting on bed rolls in the tent that been designated as Tidur's inn. "Lord Bearyl really didn't do anything to help you, Daunte. Everybody tried—Gunther, Allise, and even _Varnaz_ —to convince him to help you, but he saw it as a waste of time. He was also convinced you would sell us out so he didn't even want to try rescuing you."

"I feel so foolish," Felicity said softly. "I was so excited to join the Liberation Army and to be able to make a difference, but this—" she gestured with her hand. "I'm not sure I even _want_ Lord Bearyl to win anymore. If he throws these kinds of hissy fits now, what would happen if he became leader of our whole country? And abandoning yet another town to die?" she shook her head.

"Can we leave?" Arin asked Daunte quietly. "Lord Bearyl is an awful man. I don't want anything to do with him anymore."

"I understand how you feel, guys," Daunte said. "But we can't leave. Not just yet. We need to formulate a plan to save Uaminifu."

"That's right," Roen agreed, albeit very reluctantly. "Uaminifu is larger than Agameru. The Sheikh might not succeed in killing every citizen, but if we don't do something then a lot of people are going to die."

"Is Uaminifu worth saving?" Felicity asked suddenly. When everyone gaped at her in shock she shrugged. "Over half the kids in the Dark Chasm are from Uaminifu. They're so full of their own zealotry that parents turned in their own children! Can you believe that? This one boy in the Chasm—Lysander I think his name was—he was sent there because he refused an arranged marriage! His _own aunt_ had him tried under Original Sin because his own parents had eloped!"

"I remember him," Roen said. "He used to be pretty vocal in the Dark Chasm. What happened to him? Did he die?"

Felicity shook her head. "Worse. They broke his spirit so badly that he just became a shell of his former self. B-But he was still alive when we escaped. I hope he's still alive now."

"Me too," Daunte said softly. "I hope all those kids are still alive. I don't like that they're still being subjugated to the Dark Chasm while we're out here free."

"But you do bring up a good point though," Felicity said. "We can't help everyone without an Army, so we at least need the Liberation Army for that. But why should we stick our neck out for Uaminifu, after everything they've done to their own children?"

"Because my mother would've done the same," Daunte said.

"That's right," Arin said, nodding.

"Oh hi, Daunte." Esther had a blanket wrapped around her body and she was dabbing at a runny nose as she walked over to them. "I'd heard you had arrived. I'm very happy to see that you're okay."

"Thank you. Are you okay?"

Esther shrugged. "I have a head cold. Mom thinks I'm not used to sleeping outside for such long periods of time."

Daunte felt awful that she was sick, especially since he had recruited Esther and her family to the Army. "H-Have you seen Clara?"

"Over a head cold? No way. There's soldiers still injured from the battle, and—"

Daunte stood up and grabbed her by her hand. "Come with me."

"Wait, where are we going?" Arin asked.

The group left the tent inn and headed towards the infirmary area. Unfortunately the infirmary was _not_ located inside a tent but rather was outside with soldiers laying on bedrolls. Clara looked up as they approached and her eyes went wide. "Daunte?! You're alive!"

"I want to try something," Daunte said. He positioned himself so that he was standing in the center row of the bedrolls and released Esther's hand. "I'm going to use my Rune on the wounded."

"Really?!" Esther gasped, but Clara didn't look so optimistic. "Your True Rune might have greater reach than a standard Rune, but I don't think you will make much difference with the sick and the wounded."

"I'll still try," Daunte said. "I've got two uses of the Rune, so I'll use it twice and make sure to rest the Rune."

Clara nodded slowly. "I appreciate the help."

Daunte nodded and raised his hand high. " _Howl_!" he shouted.

The Rune of Restoration responded, and Daunte focused his energy on the Rune. Indeed, the concentration on the Rune did allow for the spell to expand out over a wider radius than normal. He felt the fatigue he'd been feeling fade, and Clara looked visibly less tired. Esther no longer looked feverish, and soldiers even began sitting up on their bedrolls.

When the spell completed however, Daunte felt drained and he fell to his knees. "Daunte!" Roen and Felicity rushed to his side, but Arin reached him first. "Are you okay, Big Brother?!"

"I don't believe it!" Esther gasped. She felt her own forehead. "M-My head cold is gone!"

"And _I_ certainly feel more rested than I have in days," Clara said. "Are you all right, Daunte?"

Daunte nodded jerkily, but pressed both hands to his forehead to help relieve the dizzy sensation he was feeling. _That…That worked better than I thought. But I probably should refrain from doing that again._

But his spell paid off and soldiers began rising to their feet, fully recovered. They turned to Clara to give thanks, but then they rounded upon Daunte, slapping him on the shoulder and squeezing his arm in gratitude.

"Thank you, Daunte!"

"I thought the pain would kill me, but now I feel great!"

"You saved Varnaz, and now you saved us! You're the best thing to happen to this Army!"

Daunte felt a little overwhelmed by their praise, and he didn't like that they were giving so much credit to him when Clara had done more. He knew he could accept the praise without question or turn their thanks back to Clara. After a moment, he decided. "I-It was nothing. Dr. Clara did far more than I, so please thank her instead."

It worked and they turned their thanks back to Clara. Clara surprisingly looked annoyed by the attention she was getting, but she gave Daunte a warm smile regardless. Sort of like a silent _'thank you'_.

"You really are incredible," Esther said with awe.

"Your fanbase seems to be growing, Daunte," Felicity laughed.

Daunte looked at her. "I have a _fanbase_?!"

"You have a True Rune, you're a hard worker, you sacrificed yourself to save a superior officer, and now you just healed all the sick and injured in camp," Roen pointed out. "You better believe you have a fanbase."

The concept was abnormal to Daunte, especially since he hadn't acted alone in almost _any_ of those events. "B-But I'm not the only one working so hard!"

"Being humble about what you've done certainly helps," Esther said.

"Hey, there you guys are!"

The group snapped to attention as Gunther hurried over to them. "Guys, we've been given marching orders! Come over here so I can explain them to you!"

"I'll head back to my family," Esther said. She bowed to Daunte. "Thank you."

"You're welcome."

Esther hurried off as the group followed Gunther to a quieter section of the camp. "So it's official," Gunther began. "Lord Bearyl has given us permission to march on Uaminifu to evacuate the town and to engage the Sheikh."

"R-Really?!" Daunte gasped. He laughed with relief.

"But there's a catch," Gunther said. "Despite our losses in the last battle, we still got new recruits and soldiers that Lord Bearyl bribed into joining us. Even so that only leaves us with a total of 500 soldiers for our standing Army."

Daunte had a sinking feeling in his gut as to where the conversation was going. Gunther quickly confirmed his dread. "As such he's allowing us to take 3 units to Uaminifu…but only 150 soldiers."

"150 soldiers?!" Felicity gasped. " _Only_ 150 against the Sheikh's entire force?!"

"Yeah," Gunther said grimly. "Oboro sent out his intelligence and he anticipates that the Sheikh will be bring four Army units to Uaminifu, 100 soldiers in each unit."

Daunte felt light-headed again. He gaped at his friends in silence before looking at Gunther. "We…We're supposed to be bringing enough soldiers to make the Sheikh's claim that they were overwhelmed by our forces more plausible. But if we're only bringing 150 soldiers to face _400_ soldiers…the Sheikh won't be fooling anybody!"

"I'm sorry," Gunther said softly. "But that's all the forces Lord Bearyl would allow. The rest are going to march on the capital."

Daunte swallowed thickly, and rubbed a hand over his mouth. Finally he nodded. "All right. We'll just have to make this work."

"So each unit will have 50 soldiers and have a commanding officer," Gunther said. "I've been assigned command of one unit, and you've been assigned command of another Daunte. As for the third unit, Lord Caesar said you could choose the commanding officer."

"What about General Varnaz?" Roen asked. "I heard him say that he would march on Uaminifu with or without Lord Bearyl's permission."

"Varnaz has been officially ordered to march with the units towards the capital," Gunther said. "We'll obviously need to move quickly and find soldiers to take with us. Daunte, do you know who you would like to command the third unit?"

Daunte thought about it for a long time. There were many officers who were qualified to lead a unit. It was a tough decision but he decided. "Viki."

"Viki?" Gunther asked with confusion. "Are…you sure that's a good idea? She's a very pretty girl but her head…she doesn't seem all there, does she?"

"Viki can take command of the unit that evacuates Uaminifu," Daunte said. "We'll hold the defenses of the city and engage the Sheikh's forces if we must. But Viki _must_ be there. We'll never be able to efficiently evacuate the city without her Blinking Rune."

Gunther grinned toothily at him. "Well Lord Bearyl will be mad we're taking the teleporter with us, but he didn't say we _couldn't_ take her with us. I'll go inform him of the plans. Would you mind rounding up our soldiers, Daunte?"

"Not at all." Daunte felt Arin squeeze his arms around his waist and he looked down at his little brother. There was fear in the boy's eyes, but he…he also looked a little _proud_ too. Daunte forced a smile at him and then looked at the others. "Would you guys like to come with us?"

"Absolutely," Roen said.

"I would much rather follow you than follow Lord Bearyl," Felicity admitted. "Let's just hope Uaminifu is worth all this."

"They'll be worth it," Daunte said. "We'll save them no matter what."

* * *

 _Investigations_

 _Secret #1_  
 **Name:** Priscilla  
 **Age:** 30  
 **From:** Razril, Islands Nation Federation  
 **Position:** none

 _Secret #2_  
You met Priscilla after she was sentenced to death for adultery, but she's had a pretty...colorful life. She met her former lover while out fishing and she accidentally sailed into Nagarean waters. The two hit it off relatively quickly though, and instead of going back home when given the chance she decided to come to Nagarea to be with her lover. You saw the house he set her up in in Baltas, correct? It seems the man really went out of his way to take care of her, but that was pretty brazen of him to bring his mistress into the same town his wife and children were in.

 _Secret #3_  
Priscilla's certainly no pushover with a sword. That's because she use to serve in the Islands Nation Federation Navy. She joined when she was a teenager but retired after serving a decade. Then she spent most of her time doing freelance mercenary work and fishing. You would never guess all of this with her seemingly delicate appearance, but it certainly works to her advantage.

 _Secret #4_  
You know this, but Priscilla was arrested because her lover's wife found out about their relationship and filed a complaint with the Grand Citadel. In order to save his own hide the man blamed everything on Priscilla, which was pretty easy as she was a foreigner, and so only Priscilla was charged. Priscilla is unapologetically nonchalant about the whole thing, but I believe she did love the man and was hurt by the betrayal. Hopefully next time though she uses sound judgment when choosing a partner.


	26. Chapter Three: Part Five

I apologize for the delay. Right before Christmas I switched jobs so I've been overloaded with work. I'll try to be more consistent with updates from now on.

* * *

Part Five

While the majority of the Liberation Army prepared to march upon Mlkwt Alsmwat, Daunte and his crew set off for Uaminifu. While ideally Daunte would've wanted to teleport to Uaminifu, Viki had revealed to him that she couldn't teleport him to a town he'd never visited.

"What about me?" Gunther had protested. "I've been to Uaminifu before! Can't you use me as the basis point for the teleportation?"

"How long ago was your last visit to Uaminifu?" Viki asked him.

Gunther had to think about it, which wasn't reassuring to Daunte. "If you can't remember the last time you were there, then unfortunately my Blinking Rune can't pinpoint the location. We'll have to physically be there in recent memory in order for my Rune to work."

"But what sense does _that_ make?! I know I've been to Uaminifu before, and I know _exactly_ where it is! Just because it wasn't most recently shouldn't matter! Why isn't the mere fact that I _have_ been there enough to teleport us?!"

"I don't know," Viki answered unexpectedly.

Gunther gaped at her. "You don't know?! You're not an expert on your _own Rune_?!"

Viki shrugged, and said nothing more. So without further arguments they began gathering their 150 troops for the evacuation. Luckily they found enough volunteers who were willing to help them on this most dangerous mission.

"Lord Caesar laid out the plan for us," Gunther announced once everyone was mobilized. "There will be three squads with fifty soldiers. I will command one, Daunte will command the other, and Viki will command the third. Lord Caesar had strategized that Daunte and mine's unit station outside of Uaminifu and engage the Sheikh's forces when they arrive. Viki's unit will work to evacuate the citizens. With any luck the people of Uaminifu will cooperate enough that they can leave well before Sheikh Umed arrives, but in case they don't Viki will use her Blinking Rune to teleport the people out of there."

"A-Are you really sure that you want me to lead an entire unit?" Viki asked uneasily. Caesar had found a pair of nose plugs for her so her voice was a bit nasally at the moment. "I-I mean I trust in the power of my Blinking Rune, but do you really think I can teleport over eighty-thousand people?"

"You won't have to do all of them at once," Daunte reassured her. "Like Gunther said, with any luck the citizens will heed our warning and will evacuate. Besides, Caesar said that you teleported ships full of people in the past. One city should be just fine for you."

Viki nodded slowly. "All right…"

"So now that we have our units and soldiers, we must choose our lieutenants for our units," Gunther said, looking up. "Have you chosen yours, Daunte?"

Daunte nodded. "Roen and Felicity."

"Good. I've chosen Priscilla and Desiree—"

Felicity scoffed, but Gunther shrugged. "Hey, Lord Bearyl has commanded most everyone to march upon the capital! Otherwise Allise would be on my squad! Besides, Desiree is _very_ quick on her feet and Priscilla said she's good with a sword! I'm sure they'll both be very helpful to me!"

"What about you, Viki?" Daunte asked her. "Which two people will you choose?"

"I-I don't know anyone in the Liberation Army," Viki admitted softly. "Lord Daunte, would you mind assigning two people to me?"

"Sure," Daunte said, standing up. "Since you're in charge of the group evacuating Uaminifu, you should have people who are capable of assisting you in getting people out." He thought about it for a long moment. "Let's see…if Shou's still hanging around, maybe we could—"

"I am."

Everyone jumped at the sudden appearance of Shou, who looked nonchalant. "If you want me to come with you, I'm ready."

"Really? Just like that?" Felicity asked.

Shou shrugged rather lazily. "I swore myself to your cause, so I might as well make myself useful."

Daunte nodded. "Thank you, Shou. You'll be in Viki's unit."

"Oh, you." Shou turned to address Viki. "Oboro knows you. He said my parents know you, too."

"They probably do," Viki agreed, laughing slightly.

"And…uh…" Daunte thought about Viki's second lieutenant. "How about Sharon? I'm sure she could use Suna to help motivate the citizens to evacuate."

"But Suna technically counts as an extra person," Gunther said. "Viki can only have two other people be her lieutenants."

"And I don't think Sharon would come to the battlefield without her dragon," Roen said.

"Then how about this?" Daunte said suddenly. "We'll assign Sharon officially to the unit, and we'll have Suna fly overhead as a non-participant. The sight of the dragon should not only scare the people of Uaminifu, but it should also spook the Sheikh's soldiers!"

"That's actually a good idea," Gunther said. "We'll have to be careful though that the Sheikh doesn't have too many archer units. They may have promise not to engage _us_ lethally, but I'm sure a dragon is a completely different matter."

"I-I think I remember Sharon," Viki said softly. "Or m-maybe not. The Sharon I'm thinking of didn't have a dragon…I think."

"So we're all set," Gunther said, standing up. "Let's go catch up to that angry ex-Cleric before he gets himself killed. Unless there's anything else you'd like to do before leaving, Daunte?"

Daunte shook his head. "Let's go."

* * *

They gathered the army for their quick advance towards Uaminifu. Daunte wasn't at all comforted by their small numbers, and he was uneasy about what was bound to happen once the Sheikh's forces arrived. But he could already see that the soldiers were uneasy about what they were doing, and so he kept his feelings to himself. He made sure that his expression remained blank, and whenever Gunther or Roen or Felicity spoke to him he spoke in a calm and steady voice.

 _I'm leading a unit significantly smaller than what I've led before. They all already look nervous, so it won't do any good if_ _ **I**_ _look nervous._

Halfway to Uaminifu they found Farzin. The Cleric was still positively seething over his encounter with Bearyl, but his mood lightened when he realized that they were coming to help. Though Daunte's own apprehension grew when he saw that their small numbers also made Farzin nervous.

 _We'll make it work somehow._

Once they reached Uaminifu, Daunte was very relieved to see the city still standing. Sheikh Umed and his forces hadn't arrived yet. "All right, we need to mobilize around the city. We should also meet with the mayor and see if we can get their assistance with the evacuation procedure."

"I'm acquainted with the mayor," Farzin said. "His name is Eamon Hiere and he's a very good politician. However, he was also promoted to mayor of Uaminifu precisely because of his radical views."

"He's responsible for turning so many children in to the Dark Chasm!" Felicity hissed.

"That may be, but so is Sheikh Umed," Farzin said calmly. "And yet Sheikh Umed wants us to avert this massacre. I believe Eamon can be reasoned with but it will be difficult. I think we should avoid bringing in the military presence until after we speak with him."

"I…don't think we're going to have much luck reaching out to the local government about this," Gunther said slowly. "There's no way they would believe us that their beloved Sheikh is leading a citywide massacre against them."

"We should still try." Farzin looked at Daunte. "My Lord, I believe the best course of action would be to infiltrate the city and speak with the mayor. If we just surround the city with our forces, the city guards may attack before the Sheikh even arrives!"

"That's a good point," Daunte said, nodding. "All right, we'll infiltrate the city and seek out Mayor Eamon Hiere and try to get his cooperation."

"Good luck," Gunther said dryly. "I'll stay outside the city limits just in case the Sheikh's forces arrive. Plus, I didn't leave Uaminifu on a good note the last time I was here, so it's best I don't venture inside."

"What did you do?" Roen asked him.

Gunther forced a smile at him. "It's not your concern."

"I'll go into the city," Daunte said. "And I'll take you with me, sir." He motioned to Farzin. "Since you know the mayor."

"So that's two people," Gunther said. "Who else will you take with you? I'll be staying out here, and Viki needs to stay out here to be on the lookout."

"I think it's best if I stay out of the city limits," Priscilla said. She tugged at her own scarlet sleeve. "These clothes mark me as a criminal, after all."

"Why don't you change out of them, then?" Felicity asked her.

Priscilla shrugged. "I don't have any other outfits. Besides, I think this color is growing on me."

Daunte looked over the people under his command carefully before deciding. "Shou, Roen, Felicity, and Desiree."

"All right, good." Gunther glanced at Farzin. "Well you have a great company to keep you safe if necessary."

Farzin scoffed and shook his head. "I can defend myself just fine."

"Really? How so?"

Farzin raised a hardcover book. Daunte remembered that he had held it against Bearyl threateningly previously. "You'd be surprised how much damage a book can do. But never mind that, we're wasting time."

"Good luck you guys, and don't be too long," Gunther said. "Today is the day the Sheikh is supposed to attack, so they'll be arriving at any time."

* * *

With his assembled party, Daunte traveled into Uaminifu. Per Farzin's suggestion they went through the front gates and though Daunte was very concerned they would be recognized, the soldiers barely glanced at them and skimmed their identification books. However, Daunte quickly got a feeling of dèjà vu when the guard checking their books suddenly spoke to them. "Can you name three of the first High Clerics of the Theocracy?"

"Aaliyah, Huda, and Rifat," Farzin immediately answered.

The guard positively grinned at them and gave them back their books. "Welcome to Uaminifu."

It didn't get much better from there. As it was late morning on a clear sunny day, the streets were packed with people. And it wasn't just the guards asking them religious questions—the shopkeepers and even random citizens stopped them and quizzed them about the Scriptures. Being a Cleric himself, Farzin answered every question effortlessly and even _corrected_ the people who asked him questions with incorrect information. It reminded Daunte strongly of Kõrkus, but much more intensive.

And that wasn't the end of the fanaticism however, as they continued down the streets. All around them Daunte caught various conversations, and the dialogue was…unsettling.

"—Sheikhs are purging the land of heretics!"

"Such a shame that so many children are so sinful!"

"Indeed! Why, just last month I had to turn my own sister in! She'd always been so shameless ever since we were children, but the way she kept looking at my husband…she never looked at her own husband that way! I knew she would sin and I needed to stop her before she did!"

"—heard that the heathens in the Dark Chasm are now being fed only once a day. What on earth are they thinking? Don't those children _want_ to redeem themselves? Why do they continue to act sinfully that the government has to keep strengthening their punishment?"

The conversations Daunte was overhearing was literally making him sick. He glanced at Roen and Felicity and he saw that they too looked extremely uncomfortable by what they were hearing. _I'm…starting to see some validation as to why Lord Bearyl didn't want to save these people. But…But I can't abandon them. Their ignorance is so infuriating, but I won't leave them all to die!_

They neared the end of the market district and were starting to turn towards the upper crust residential neighborhood when Daunte caught sight of a rune shop and raised his hand. "Guys, I need to make a quick stop. I want to see if this shop has a Boar Rune."

"That makes sense considering you wield a tekko," Farzin said. "But we _really_ need to hurry. The Sheikh could arrive at any moment."

"I'm all set with Runes," Shou said as they entered the shop. "So I don't th—" he abruptly stopped talking and paused. Daunte stopped dead in his tracks at what he saw.

"Oh, good morning." A stunningly scantily-clad beautiful woman with long silver hair greeted them from behind the counter. Her voice was sultry and she dipped her curvaceous body over the counter and Daunte had to advert his eyes so he wouldn't accidentally look down her dress. "How can I help you all today?"

"I-I'm looking for a Boar Rune," Daunte said, still keeping his eyes away from the Runemistress. "Do you have any?"

The Runemistress laughed softly behind her hand. "Of course I do. I would be glad to attach it your hand for 1,500 bits. Unless you're a government employee, for which the price is 150 bits. Do we have a deal?"

"Yes," Daunte said. He stepped forward and offered his left hand. "I'm not a government employee, so I will pay 1,500 bits."

The Runemistress quickly attached the Rune to Daunte's hand, and Daunte felt a measure of relief having the Boar Rune to use. She turned sultry eyes towards the rest of the party. "Is there anyone else who would like a Rune?"

"Miss Jeane, I did the inventory," a clerk came out from the back room. "Our stock is down eighty-five percent from last month."

"Well, it can't be helped," Jeane said, straightening up. "With all the new regulations it's become too expensive to keep full inventory."

"But we may not have enough money to—"

"We'll be fine," she reassured him calmly.

Daunte wanted to ask her if she would like to join the Liberation Army, but before he could speak Farzin cut him off. "So you got your Rune. We need to leave now."

"Have a good day," Jeane told them good-naturedly. She blew a kiss at them as they left.

Per Farzin's insistence they left the rune shop and followed him out of the market district and towards the mayor's house. "Allow me to do the talking," Farzin said over his shoulder. "Word may not have reach this city yet that I was defrocked, so we might be able to get in there without effort."

"Right," Daunte said, nodding.

It wasn't long before they reached the gates of Eamon's mansion, and Farzin saluted the guards at the gates. "I am Cleric Farzin Masood. I'm here to speak with Mayor Eamon Hiere about important matters."

"We were unaware of any Clerics coming by for a visit," one guard said.

"I apologize for the short notice, but it of the most absolute importance that I speak with him," Farzin responded.

The guards looked at each other before nodding. "It's not our place to refuse a Cleric. Come in."

Daunte could barely hide the sigh of relief as they were escorted onto the mansion's grounds. The guards on patrol snapped to attention as they passed and he tried not to look nervous. _With any luck the mayor will see reason._

They were led straight to Eamon Hiere's office. Daunte had been expecting an older man, possibly older than Farzin. So he was surprised to see that Eamon Hiere was in fact _younger_ than Farzin, possibly his early thirties. He wore the white uniform one would expect from a Nagarean government official, and it contrasted strongly with his dark bronze skin. His eyes were pale silver, and they looked upon them with intensity.

"Cleric Farzin Masood," Eamon greeted, standing up from his desk and walking around it to stand in front of it. "It's been a long time."

"Far too long," Farzin greeted him. "I see you're still running Uaminifu efficiently."

"Thank you," Eamon said sincerely. "I must say I'm surprised to see you."

"I understand—"

"Especially since you were recently defrocked."

Daunte stiffened, and snapped into a fighting pose when the guards stationed around the room quickly drew their weapons. "Damn," Shou said under his breath.

"I hope you'll forgive me, but I must take you all into custody," Eamon said.

Farzin didn't look surprised by the ambush. In fact, he barely moved a hair. "Well, then let's skip the pleasantries. You're all about to die."

"Really?" Eamon asked, not looking fazed. "And how are we all about to die?"

"Because Sheikh Keiran Umed is marching upon this city with his forces under orders to massacre all of you."

The guards shifted with shock at this proclamation. Eamon however still looked unmoved. "Am I supposed to be impressed by such an outlandish lie, Farzin?"

"Have I ever been known to be outlandish?" Farzin asked him. "This isn't a joke, Eamon—"

"Do not speak to me with such familiarity," Eamon snapped at him.

"This isn't a joke," Farzin quickly repeated himself. "Right now as we speak, the Sheikh is on his way here to kill every citizen of this city."

"And again," Eamon responded. "Am I supposed to be impressed by your lie?"

"I'm not lying to you!" Farzin exploded. He shook his hands with frustration. "I was there in the Grand Citadel when the Cabinet of High Clerics drafted this resolution! They ordered this massacre to turn the country against the Liberation Army!"

"The country _is_ against the Liberation Army. There is nothing to accomplish by killing us, the most faithful city in all of Nagarea." He waved his hand. "Seize them."

Daunte was very disappointed that Eamon wasn't listening to them, but in all honesties he wasn't surprised. _Well…we tried at least._

"Don't you understand?!" Felicity exploded with anger. "They _are_ coming here and they _are_ going to kill you! The Sheikh himself sent us here ahead of him to evacuate the city!"

"Now you're truly not making any sense," Eamon said. "You're telling me the Sheikh is going to kill us all, but you're also telling me that he wants to evacuate the city?"

"He doesn't want to kill you all, but he's been compelled to do it! We're here to stop him! Just listen to us!"

"No. I refuse to listen to anymore nonsense."

"So you're not going to call for an evacuation?" Farzin asked him.

"Why would I organize the evacuation of a city of eight-five thousand people based on tall-tales?"

"I—"

"Lord Daunte!"

There was a sudden 'whoosh' and a burst of light within the chamber, and Viki suddenly appeared. The guards shouted in shock and jumped away, and Eamon's jaw dropped in shock. "Lord Daunte," Viki said, hurrying to Daunte's side. "The scouts—the scouts have spotted a large number of soldiers three kilometers away!"

"T-They're here!" Roen cried out.

"Now do you believe us?!" Farzin snapped at Eamon. But Eamon only shrugged. "The soldiers are probably here for _you_."

"Wait a minute," Shou said suddenly, looking at Viki. "How did you teleport here?"

"Because Gunther knew you guys would be at the mayor's mansion," Viki responded.

"But you've never been here before," Shou said. "If you've never been here, how did you teleport here?"

Viki shrugged. "I don't know. I just did."

Daunte didn't want to question the logic of Viki's Blinking Rune at the moment. He grabbed her by her hand. "Get us out of here! We need to take position to defend the city!"

"You're not going anyw—" Eamon began, but he was cut off when Viki activated her Blinking Rune and teleported the group straight out the office.

"What should we do, sir?" a soldier asked him. "Do we evacuate the city?"

"Of course not," Eamon said harshly. "You should know better than to believe tall-tales told by the Liberation Army! _If_ there ae any soldiers on their way here, they're most likely here for _them_ , not us!"

"I…yes, sir."

* * *

"So the trip was a total waste of time?" Gunther asked blandly.

"I can't believe that moron won't see reason!" Farzin raged, slamming a fist down upon his book. "How hard is it to believe that they're going to die if we don't save them?!"

"Well, even you have to admit that our story is pretty outrageous," Priscilla said blandly. "Even if it _is_ the truth."

Daunte held a hand over his eyes and squinted at the Army advancing from three kilometers away. "I'm seeing four full army units. So it really is 400 soldiers against our 150."

"Yeah, the odds still don't look good," Roen said grimly. "Especially with the city being uncooperative."

"Lord Daunte."

Daunte nearly jumped out of his skin when Shou suddenly materialized beside him. "My Lord, we have a situation," Shou said. His blunt tone, however, lessened the impact of his words.

"Well, we clearly have a situation," Sharon said sharply. "Or haven't you seen the army advancing?"

"There's more to it than that. Lord Daunte." Shou stepped closer. "The Sheikh's main unit has a High Cleric in it."

Daunte felt his heart sink, and a strong feeling of dread filled his being. He quickly looked at Gunther, who similarly looked unnerved by this news. _Oh Nagar. Did we walk into a trap?!_

"A High Cleric?!" Roen exclaimed. "That can't be! They're supposed to be on recess!"

"T—Then they're _not_ on recess?!" Desiree cried out, pressing a hand to her throat.

" _Allise_!" Gunther shouted. He looked towards the south in horror. "The Army—are _they_ walking into a trap?!"

"We've been had!" Felicity snapped. She wrung a hand through her hair, causing her veil to become lopsided. "Did…were we deceived into coming here after all!"

"No!" Farzin snapped. "The massacre is real! Otherwise I wouldn't have risked my life to come all the way out here!"

"But this is odd," Priscilla said grimly. "Didn't the Sheikh say they would be arriving in civilian clothes to help put blame on the Liberation Army? If they're riding with High Cleric, then they're leaving the impression that this massacre really _was_ sanctioned by the government, which would be counterintuitive. Maybe…" she looked at Daunte fearfully. "Maybe this really was another trap?"

Daunte swallowed thickly and looked back towards the Sheikh's Army. He remembered the argument he'd witnessed between Keiran and the Matron. Keiran had been genuinely furious during the argument, so this couldn't have been entirely faked. And he was angry without even knowing Daunte was there!

 _But having a High Cleric ride with a group that's about to massacre an entire city is a humongous PR mistake. I mean, the High Clerics don't even visit the Dark Chasm because of the potential negative publicity, but yet one High Cleric risks being linked to a massacre?! That doesn't make any sense!_

"Daunte," Gunther spoke to him calmly. "We need to decide what to do. Either they've tricked us, or they really are here for a massacre. If it's the latter then we need to take position and defend the city, because they refuse to evacuate. But if it's the former, then we need to get the hell out of here before it's too late."

"The soldiers are moving too quickly for me to gather enough information in time to find out which one is right," Shou said. He looked at Daunte. "What should we do?"

What _was_ the right decision? Risk the lives of his meager units on the very real chance this was a trap, just to save a city of ungrateful zealots? Or to run and save themselves and potentially risk the deaths of eighty-five thousand people? Daunte let out a shaky breath. _Since when did this suddenly become my sole decision?! …But I guess this is what happens when you're a leader._

"Daunte," Gunther said again. "We need to decide now before it's too late. Do we stay or do we leave?"

Daunte hesitated for but a moment, before he nodded stiffly. "Gunther, take your unit and position yourselves to the northwest of the city. I will take my unit and position us to the northeast. The army is advancing upon us from a single direction, so we don't have to worry about an ambush from the back. Viki?"

"Y-Yes?" Viki asked, stepping forward.

"Take your unit back into Uaminifu and try to start the evacuation process," Daunte told her. "Do anything you can to get the citizens out of the city. Sharon, can you have Suna fly overhead?"

"Sure!" Sharon said cheerfully.

"Thank you. And Shou?"

"I'll just spread a lot of rumors," Shou said. "That should scare a few people."

"Thank you. Farzin." Daunte looked to the ex-Cleric. "Stay with Viki's unit and help with the evacuations."

"I'll do what I can," Farzin promised.

"All right, everyone, let's MOVE!" Gunther shouted. "They're coming!"

* * *

The Evacuation of Uaminifu

Sheikh's Forces: 400

Liberation Army Forces: 150

Victory: Hold the Sheikh's forces off long enough for the evacuation to complete

Failure: The Sheikh's forces reach the city

Two kilometers outside of city limits, Keiran craned his neck as he looked around. He was dressed in a zaffre-colored sherwani with cream-colored pants, and his Kampilan sword was strapped to his hip. He frowned deeply. _Where are they?_

"And here we are." High Cleric Yuuto brought his horse to a stop beside Keiran's. He looked at the Sheikh with a harsh expression behind his white hood. "Remember what you were told, Keiran Umed. If you fail in your duty again, you will be relieved of your command."

Keiran did not look at him, but kept his voice steady. "I understand."

Behind him, dressed in a crimson-colored sherwani and brown pants, Mihr was visibly seething and glaring at Yuuto's back. The rest of the Sheikh's soldiers looked equally grim. None of them were enthusiastic about the task they were being compelled to perform.

 _But I didn't agree to lead this…campaign, then my men would've been left in the "care" of that adulterous, murdering bastard._ Keiran's frown deepened. _And who knows what depths that man will sink to in order to appeal to the High Clerics? What he will force my men to do in order to elevate his own status?_

"Well?" Yuuto demanded sharply. "What are you waiting for, Umed? Lead your Army and advance upon the city!"

"Sir!" Lanny was shouting as his horse quickly rode up to them. He was dressed in a forest green tunic and black pants, and his eyes were wide. "Sir—the Liberation Army! The Liberation Army is here!" he didn't bother hiding the relief in his voice.

" _What_?!" Yuuto shouted, glaring in the direction of Uaminifu. Keiran took the opportunity to let out the breath he was holding. "Why on earth are those infidels here?!"

"Ex-Cleric Farzin Masood must have caught up to them to warn them about our advance," Keiran said bluntly. "Without a doubt they have aligned with the city and are armed to defend it. This is a lost cause, and I cannot risk the lives of my men against the combined forces of the Liberation Army and the city. I will call for the retreat." He was already starting to turn his horse around.

"Not so fast!" Yuuto interjected. He pointed towards the city. "Just look at them, Sheikh! What a pitiful force! You can overtake them easily!"

Keiran froze in his saddle, and his head snapped around. He saw two group forming on the north end of Uaminifu, but dread settled into his stomach. He yanked out his binoculars and looked. His eyes swiftly looked over each unit and his jaw hung open in shock.

 _A…Are you kidding me? Those aren't full army units! Is that even 100 people?! How could they do this?! I told them the threat was very real, and Bearyl Lutis sent the_ _ **bare minimum help**_ _?!_

"HA!" Yuuto laughed, looking through his own pair of binoculars. "The guards on the city walls are shooting arrows at them! Oh, this is going to be _much_ easier than I could've imagined!" he lowered his binoculars and grinned wickedly. "With the Liberation Army present, and with the citizens of Uaminifu openly treating them with hostility, we'll definitely be able to convince the public that the rebels caused this massacre! Hell, we might even convince the citizens of Uaminifu that this is the fault of the heretics!" he nodded to Keiran. "This is our chance. Order your men to charge, Sheikh!"

Keiran slowly lowered his binoculars. For the first time in years he felt genuine fear in the pit of his being. He looked over his shoulder at Mihr, and his second-in-command looked positively furious at the circumstances. Keiran slowly turned back around, and briefly touched a hand to the hilt of his sword. _Maybe…Maybe I should kill the High Cleric and force a retreat? I could blame it on—_

But it was a ludicrous thought and he quickly shook his head. _No. No, they would know I did it. They would definitely know I did it. And if I killed a High Cleric, they wouldn't just execute me. All of my other men here today would die, and so would their families._ He grinded his teeth together. _Damn you._ _ **Damn you**_ _, Bearyl Lutis!_

"Sheikh!" Yuuto snapped. "Every second we sit here is a second of wasted opportunity! Call the order to advance _now_!"

Of _course_ the High Cleric would require Keiran to call the order. By Keiran giving the order it expunge Yuuto of responsibility of the massacre, even if he was practically _blackmailing_ Keiran into doing this. Keiran let out a short breath, and steadied his voice. He raised his right hand. "Units B and C. Forward march!"

* * *

"STOP SHOOTING ARROWS AT US!" Gunther hollered from behind his shield. "Don't you idiots see the Army advancing?! They're here to kill you!"

"That's not the Sheikh!" a soldier shouted. "They're in civilian clothes! You're not fooling anyone!"

"They have a blasted High Cleric with them!"

"Really?" several soldiers looked up towards the advancing army. One soldier's eyes widened. "Sir! That looks like the robes of a High Cleric!"

Daunte felt a measure of relief, especially when he saw the shock in the sergeant's face. However, it was short-lived. "If that _is_ the Sheikh, then they're obviously here for the Liberation Army, not us!" he glared down at the Army stationed to protect them. "Just get out of here, you damned heretics!" the guards on the wall readied their bows again, and the Liberation Army frantically raised their bow-covered shields.

"Hey, Daunte!" Gunther shouted as another rain of arrows showered over them. "It's not too late to leave these guys to their fate!"

"Now is not the time to be sarcastic, Gunther!" Daunte shouted back to him. He was sandwiched between Roen and Felicity behind a shield.

"I'm NOT!" Gunther shouted back to him. But Daunte heard the grin in his voice so he wasn't entirely sure if he was serious or not.

"I hope Viki is having better luck than us," Daunte muttered.

Inside the city, however…

"O-Okay, everyone!" Viki shouted meekly as the citizens of the market district ignored her and went about their business like normal. Sharon stood beside her and glared at the oblivious people around her. "If all of you would come over here, I can teleport you to safety! …Um, excuse me?"

"Damn you, you idiots!" Farzin shouted. The insult actually worked to make people pause and look at them. "The end of on nigh! If you don't get out of this city, you're all going to be slaughtered! You and you and you and YOU!" he gestured wildly at them. "None of you are going to live to see nightfall!"

The stares only lingered for a few more moments before the citizens continued about their business.

"This is a bust," Shou snapped as he materialized beside them. "I've sent out my rumors, but nobody is listening to me! If they're going to be this _blind_ to a threat on their lives, then maybe they deserve what they get!"

"Hey!" Viki yelped. "That's a terrible thing to say!"

" _We're_ going to die too if we stay here!" Shou pointed out.

"Oh, for the love of…!" Sharon growled. She pressed two fingers to her mouth and whistled. " _Suna_!"

A loud growl reverberated the air, and the citizens finally stilled and looked skyward. The golden baby dragon flew overhead, growling as menacingly as it could.

"A _dragon_!" someone shrieked.

"There's a monster!"

"Suna, set fire to someone's house!" Sharon called out gleefully.

Unfortunately, Suna's presence had a less than desirable impact on the people of Uaminifu. Instead of falling into line to evacuate, they instead panicked. Within seconds a full-scale riot had erupted in the market district.

"Oh, this is _worse_ than before!" Viki wailed, rubbing a hand to her head. "They're too scattered for me to teleport them!"

"Oops?" Sharon offered unapologetically.

"I should've stayed in Falena," Shou grumbled, folding his arms over his chest.

"Well, it looks like we're going to die here with everyone else," Farzin sighed. He sounded as though he were disappointed with the weather, and not about their impending death.

"A dragon!" a guard on the wall shouted. "There's a dragon flying through the town!"

" _Damn_!" the sergeant snapped. "Forget the Liberation Army for right now! Focus your arrows on the dragon before it kills somebody!"

"This is a disaster," Felicity complained softly.

"GUYS!" they heard Desiree shouted.

Daunte lifted the shield and his jaw dropped. Two units from the Sheikh's army was less than _nine meters_ away! The two units split to engage each of Gunther and Daunte's units, and Daunte could've sworn he saw Lanny in the unit advancing on Gunther. The unit advancing upon Daunte, however, was led by Mihr. "T…TO ARMS!" he shouted. "Don't let them near Uaminifu!"

"A-Are we supposed to attack the Liberation Army?" a soldier asked Mihr.

"Do we have any other choice?" Mihr responded.

"O-Oh Nagar," Roen said fearfully. "That's a cavalry unit. And we're an _infantry_ unit!"

"Use nonlethal force!" Daunte snapped as they began to charge towards Mihr's unit. "The Sheikh swore to me that they would engage us nonlethally!"

"But _you_ promised the Sheikh a larger unit!" one of the Liberation Army soldiers shouted to Daunte.

Daunte didn't have time to feel dread about that simple fact when Mihr's unit was upon them.

From the back of the battle, Keiran calmly turned to the remaining archery unit. "Fire arrows upon the battlements."

"Ah, good!" Yuuto laughed. "That will kill the guards on duty while they're distracted."

Keiran had discussed this with the unit before Yuuto had spontaneously arrived to ride with them into this massacre. He had guessed that Uaminifuwould have a hard time believing Daunte's story about their arrival to kill them all, so he brought his archery unit to open fire upon the battlements. Not to kill anyone, really, but to let the city know that the threat was very real.

"Damn, that dragon is too fast!" one soldier complained.

"INCOMING!" a soldier shrieked.

"WHAT?!" the sergeant shouted. They had been distracted, so when the arrows began raining down upon them they were taken entirely off-guard. The guards panicked, and despite Keiran's careful efforts to not harm anyone their panic caused several guards to be hit.

"T-They fired upon us!" a wounded guard wailed, clutching at the arrow in his knee. "The Sheikh's forces!"

"The Sheikh's firing upon the battlements?!" Roen shouted in disbelief. Daunte however was too distracted by their battle to be surprised.

"W…" the sergeant looked towards Keiran's forces with disbelief. "What's going on?"

"Again," Keiran commanded grimly. The words tasted foul in his mouth. Thankfully the soldiers on the wall were better prepared for the second wave of arrows and scrambled in different directions.

"Sir!" a guard on one of the towers shrieked, clutching a spyglass to his chest. "I saw it! I saw Sheikh Umed! He motioned to the archery unit, and they fired upon us! It really is him and he gave the order to attack us!"

"We TOLD YOU SO!" Gunther barked over his shoulder as he parlayed another soldier's blow.

"G-Get off the wall!" the sergeant shouted. "Find the mayor NOW! The Sheikh attacked us! They really _are_ here to kill us!"

 _FINALLY_ , Daunte thought with relief.

Mihr's unit did indeed keep their word and were engaging them nonlethally, and Daunte could see that Gunther's unit was also being engaged nonlethally, but they were still being overwhelmed. The blows they received still hurt though, and bones were broken.

Gunther's unit didn't fare better, though some were more amused than others.

"STAY STILL!" Lanny shouted. Despite the order to use nonlethal force, his youthful anger was getting the better of him. He kept stabbing his sword at Desiree, who was effortlessly dodging him with graceful, fluid motions. "Damn it all, fight me!"

"Aggressive as always, aren't you boy?" Priscilla laughed at him.

Lanny's eyes went wide when he saw her. "W-What are you doing here? HEY!" he snapped at Desiree. He swung his sword again, but she dodged it this time with a graceful backflip. The motion however caused her helmet to fall off, and her pink curls fell down around her head as she straightened.

Lanny's eyes went wide, and he froze in his tracks. "Y…You're a _girl_?!"

Desiree giggled, and took advantage of his shock to calmly kick the sword out of his hand. "OW!" Lanny yelped, clutching at his wrist. The shock faded and he quickly became angry. "Why, you little—!" he charged at Desiree with nothing but his bare hands, but the dancer used her superior speed to once again dodge him. This left Lanny stumbling forward until he fell face-first into the dirt.

"Oh, don't be angry," Desiree cooed to him. She held out a hand to him. "Are you all right?"

Lanny merely glared at her and scrambled back to her feet. "Stop mocking me!" he snapped.

Desiree blinked. "I'm not mocking. I simply—"

"Hey, it's _Desiree_!" one of Keiran's soldier's shouted. In the blink of an eye, roughly a quarter of the Sheikh's forces in that unit abandoned the fight to mob Desiree.

"The dancer from Baltas!"

"She joined the Liberation Army?!"

"I don't care! She's even more beautiful up close!"

"Thank you, thank you!" Desiree laughed, taking the opportunity to sign autographs for her adoring fans.

"H-Hey! **HEY**!" Lanny shouted. "We're in the middle of a battle! We're supposed to be fighting! Not fawning over some girl!"

"You're too young to understand, Lanny!" a soldier snapped at him.

Lanny's face turned purple with anger. "I'm NOT too young!" he stomped his feet in anger. "I'm already thirteen, you moron!"

Gunther watched all of this in silence for a moment, especially after his own opponent abandoned their fight to reach Desiree. Then he calmly sheathed his sword. "And they thought I was crazy for bringing her along…"

"We should probably go and save her though," Priscilla laughed.

"Why? She's clearly enjoying the attention." Indeed, Desiree looked positively delighted by the soldiers fawning over her.

Inside Uaminifu, the mood was a lot less pleasant.

"What the hell is going on here?!" Eamon Hiere shouted as he arrived in the market district with his bodyguards. "There's a bloody battle going on outside and my citizens are _rioting_?!"

"Mayor!" two wounded soldiers limped towards him. They briefly saluted before speaking. "The Sheikh! The Sheikh attacked us!"

"W-WHAT?!" Eamon hollered, doing a double-take.

"H-He ordered his archery unit to fire upon the battlements!" the second soldier wailed. "Our injuries—they were caused by the _Sheikh_ , not the Liberation Army! He's really here to slaughter us!"

"A-A-A-A-A-A…" Eamon sputtered frantically as he tried to formulate words. "Are you absolutely certain it was the Sheikh and not some imposter?"

"It WAS the Sheikh!" the first confirmed. "I recognized him through my spyglass! And-And he had a _High Cleric_ with him! This was obviously a government-sanctioned attack against us!"

Eamon slapped a hand over his mouth in disbelief. Cold, ugly fear quickly filled his body and it made him physically ill. He looked to his bodyguards for support, but they were also at a loss for words. One or two were even staring at him accusatorily.

 _I…oh, Nagar. I-If I had started the evacuations when Farzin told me to, I…_ he felt like he was about to throw up. _My citizens are going to die because of me. What have I done?_

"Sir!" the first soldier hollered. "What do we do?!"

Eamon nodded jerkily and he spoke in an unsteady voice. "Ring the alert bells and order the evacuation. Direct the citizens out through the south entrance. Hurry!"

"My Lord, the girl who teleported into your office is right there!" one of his bodyguards exclaimed, pointing towards Viki. "Maybe _she_ can get most of them out of here safely?"

Eamon nodded again. "Y-Yes. Start gathering up the groups here and send them over to that girl. Everyone else needs to proceed to the south entrance! _Now_!"

"It looks like Eamon is finally seeing reason," Farzin said grimly.

"But this is too chaotic!" Viki wailed. "I can't coordinate a mass teleportation like this!"

"Oh, jeez," Shou groaned, covering his face in his hand.

* * *

Outside of town, the alarm bells could clearly be heard. Daunte sighed with relief and shook his head. "They're finally evacuating the town!" he shouted over to Roen and Felicity.

"Good!" Felicity shouted.

The sounds of the evacuation bells reached Keiran's unit. "T-They're evacuating!" Yuuto exclaimed. He gestured at Keiran. "Hurry! We need to do this now!"

Keiran hesitated for a moment before raising his hand. "Units A and D. Forward march!"

The realization that the Sheikh really _was_ there to massacre them did not cause the citizens of Uaminifu to mobilize in an orderly fashion. All it did was cause widespread panic. Almost all of the eighty-five thousand people were caught up in the hysteria, fleeing their homes with whatever they could carry and trampling over each other. Only a handful listened to reason and either made their way to the south entrance and out of harm's way, or made their way towards Viki to be safely teleported outside of town.

Three hundred people, however, did not yield the evacuation warnings and fled out through the _north entrance_ and right into the middle of the battle.

"W-What the—STOP!" Daunte shrieked as the panicked citizens, men and women and children of various ages pushed themselves out into the midst of the battle. "No! Get back!"

"You idiots, you're going to get yourselves killed!" Gunther shouted. "Damn it all! What is Viki _doing_?!"

"P-Please stop pulling at me!" Viki wailed as dozens of hands grabbed for her. "I-I-I can't concentrate like this!"

"Dragon girl, get your damned dragon!" Farzin shouted. People recognized him as a Cleric and threw themselves at his feet, asking for a final blessing. Others were also pulling at him.

"My name is Sharon!" Sharon snapped, but she whistled again for Suna, who came out from the sky and flew down towards the mob. But this only caused even greater panic as people scrambled in different directions to get out of the way.

On a nearby rooftop, Shou was lounging and watching the clouds. "What a pain," he grumbled.

"Oh no, _guys_!" Priscilla shouted. She pointed. "The Sheikh! He's coming!"

Of course, this shout did nothing to quell the panic. Both Daunte's forces, Gunther's forces, and even the Sheikh's forces were overwhelmed by panicking, angry citizens. And both sides were being violently assaulted by the citizens who didn't know who was defending their city, and who was there to kill them.

"Well, this was a bust," Mihr said, sheathing his sword. Someone grabbed him from behind, and he instinctively elbowed the attacker in the face. He turned and gave pause when he saw an elderly man lying on the ground, clutching his bleeding face. "Sorry," he offered lamely.

Daunte was left standing there, dumbstruck. This was worse than anything he could've imagined. And while he now fully believed that the Sheikh had wanted to prevent the massacre, both of their efforts were clearly going to waste. People were being trampled, and to his horror he actually saw some kill in clear self-defense. This was _not_ how this was supposed to happen. "Howl!" he shouted, frantically healing the people surrounding him. It worked, but they kept fighting and trampling. "HOWL!" he frantically shouted again, tears stinging his eyes as he was forced to use his healing spell once more. But it did nothing to quell the chaos around him.

 _The Sheikh should've done more to prevent this. However, I know that his replacement would've actually launched a massacre and not a pretend one. No…WE should've done more. Lord Bearyl should've allowed us to take as many soldiers as we could to defend this city. If we outnumbered the Sheikh's forces, he could've convinced the High Cleric this was a lost cause!_

Daunte felt a blow strike the back of his head and he saw stars. He took two steps forward and fell onto his knees. His vision rattled, and he felt blood slide down his neck and soak into his collar. In a clear daze, he sat there dumbly as an angry citizen rounded upon him, crying hysterically as he raised a pole.

"You damned Holy Army scoundrel!" the man shrieked. "A-After everything we've done for you and you reward us with death?!"

Daunte gaped at him. After everything he had done to _save_ these people and they thought he was there to kill them?!

"STOP IT!" Roen hollered, tackling the man. He punched the man twice in the face, knocking him unconscious, before joining Felicity at Daunte's side. "Daunte, hang in there!"

"Are you all right?" Felicity asked him softly.

Daunte then lost his temper. "Damn you all. DAMN YOU ALL!" he jumped to his feet, despite the motion making him dizzy. "We're trying to save you! SAVE YOU! And all of you are too stupid and too self-absorbed to realize this! None of you care what we sacrificed by coming here! You don't care what the Sheikh has had to sacrifice by trying to save you! No, all of you are too stupid to understand ANYTHING!"

His right hand suddenly exploded in green-yellow light. Daunte gaped at the Rune of Restoration, and the people surrounding him abruptly stopped fighting to stare. He slowly raised his right hand, feeling his head injury heal and his vision cleared as he raised his right hand high.

The familiar voice then returned, whispering in his ears. _"Berate."_

Daunte gasped. He'd heard this word before, back when he'd been imprisoned in the Sheikh's garrison. Too much had been going on for him to notice, but…but this was familiar. Like when he unlocked the _Howl_ spell from the Rune of Restoration.

 _Then—I've unlocked another spell?!_

He didn't waste a moment and stretched his hand high over his head. " _BERATE!_ "

The symbol of the Rune of Restoration rose high into the air, and with everyone paused and staring there wasn't a single person who _didn't_ see it. The sky abruptly turned dark, and from the clouds green-yellow rays of lights rain down upon the battlefield, sending people scattering and screaming. Daunte was horrified to see the spell _hurt_ people, but it didn't kill anyone thankfully. But he was still surprised.

 _The…The Rune of Restoration has an attack spell?! What does that have to do with restoration?!_

"Daunte!" Gunther shouted, running over to him. "It worked! The people are fleeing away from the battle, and you've spooked the Sheikh's forces!"

Daunte laughed slightly in relief. "Good! Hopefully Viki and the others can finish the evacuation!"

"That," Yuuto breathed softly. "That was the True Rune. That symbol was exactly how the Matron said it would look! We need to keep surging forward!"

Keiran however was sitting stunned on his horse. _Daunte…he had the True Rune all this time? I had him in my custody, and I didn't know he had the True Rune!_ He shook his head. _It doesn't matter. There are more important things to worry about._

"Your Worship, we've lost the battle," Keiran announced. "If the boy uses that spell one more time he will wipe out my soldiers. We're outmatched and need to retreat."

"Outmatched?!" Yuuto sputtered. "Look at your soldiers, you fool! They're mostly injured, not dead! And _we've_ barely been touched! We haven't a moment to lose, we need to finish this massacre and capture that boy!"

"If he uses that spell again, we'll all die," Keiran snapped at him. "I've already risked my soldiers enough with this disgusting mission. I'll not risk more of them."

"'Disgusting mission'?!" Yuuto echoed ominously. He rounded upon Keiran. "How dare you! This was a Holy Decree, Umed! Consider yourself court-martialed! Now you will follow this command, or I will place you under arrest for treason!"

Keiran didn't move a hair. "I refuse."

"You're refusing the order of a HIGH CLERIC?!" Yuuto shouted, finally losing his temper.

"Yes," Keiran said. "I'm ordering the retreat, and we're leaving."

"Arrest this man now!" Yuuto shouted, pointing at Keiran. He didn't notice that not one of Keiran's soldiers moved to obey his order as he turned his horse around. " _I'll_ lead this onslaught if I must! Just you wa—"

Keiran swiftly unsheathed his sword and pressed it against Yuuto's throat. "Allow me to make something clear to you," he rasped. "I'm not going to let you kill anyone. And if you decide to force _my_ men to follow _your_ deplorable orders, I will slit your throat. Do you understand me, Sir?"

Yuuto gaped at him, and carefully arched his head back to avoid the blade pressed against his jugular. He swallowed very carefully before answering. "K…Keiran Umed. Y-You—"

" _Do you understand me_?!" Keiran bellowed out. His shouts echoed for meters around him, startling his soldiers.

Upon hearing Keiran's shout, Mihr spun on his heel. His eyes went wide with horror. " _Damn_!" he shouted, and raced back to his horse.

"O-Oh," Felicity gasped, pointing at the sight. Daunte was also gaping. _I-Is that the Sheikh?! Did he really pull a sword on the_ _ **High Cleric**_ _?!_

"I-I…" Yuuto hesitated, eyes looking downward at the blade. "Yes. I understand."

Keiran removed the blade but kept it pointed at the High Cleric. "Get out of here," he growled at him.

Yuuto frantically rubbed at the welt at his throat. His head snapped around, as though about to bark out an order, but he paused when he saw not one of Keiran's soldiers came to his aid. Every single one of them glared back at him, as though daring him to do or say the wrong thing. He snatched at the reins of his horse. "I will not forget this," Yuuto told Keiran ominously. "It won't be today, but consider your life to be over." He swung his horse around and galloped quickly in the opposite direction of the battle.

Keiran calmly sheathed his sword as reached Mihr reached his side. His second-in-command looked positively furious, and grabbed Keiran's right wrist and leaned in to hiss at him. "What are you _done_?! If you were going to defy that monster, then you should've allowed _me_ to threaten him! You'll never save face now!"

Keiran calmly pulled his hand loose. "It doesn't matter. What's done is done."

"And you let him go! You were better off killing him!"

"Was I, now?"

" _Yes_! Now he'll report back to the capital what you did!"

"And if I killed him, then his murder by my hand would've been reported back to the capital. Either way, I wasn't going to win in this situation."

"Excellent job, sir!" a soldier positively gushed as he hurried over to Keiran. "That was so amazing how you stood up to him like that!"

Keiran looked at him calmly. "Your superior officer just committed high treason. It is inappropriate for you to praise me for it."

* * *

As the Sheikh's forces departed back to their Garrison, completely uncertain of what was going to happen after Keiran defied a High Cleric and threatened their life, the evacuation of Uaminifu finally completed.

But it wasn't a complete victory. With everything that had happened during the course of the day, and because they did not heed the evacuation orders, approximately 100 citizens had died. The knowledge that it could've been _far_ worse did nothing to comfort Daunte, especially when _they_ had lost two dozen soldiers.

"You bastard!"

Daunte flinched, and turned around. He suddenly found himself face-to-face with thirty anguished and very _angry_ citizens of Uaminifu.

"This is all YOUR fault!" the woman in front shrieked. She shoved Daunte in the chest. "None of this would've happened if you had just left us alone!"

"Are you _stupid_?!" an even larger group of citizens advanced upon them. "He's the reason that we're all still alive! Or didn't you notice that the Sheikh really was here to kill us?!"

"But if the Liberation Army didn't exist, then the High Clerics would've never come up with this plan in the first place!" a man from the first group shouted.

"But the fact that the Cabinet of High Clerics even _thought_ of this idea shows that they're unfit to be in power!"

The arguing between the two groups escalated. Daunte didn't have the strength to join in. He just wanted to lie down and rest for a moment.

"Quiet! EVERYONE QUIET!"

The groups did abruptly silence at Eamon Hiere's shout. He was hoisted up onto the shoulders of two bodyguards so that the entire populous could see him. "Everyone, _stop_ ," he pleaded with them. "Do not blame that boy for what happened here." he pointed to Daunte. "That boy is a hero. That boy risked his life to save us."

 _It wasn't just me_ , Daunte thought, but Eamon continued before he could say the words out loud. "This is _my_ fault. _I_ was warned about the massacre in advance. I chose to ignore the warning and not issue the evacuation until it was too late. There's nobody to blame in this situation but me."

The people began to stir with mild outrage, and Eamon raised his hands to appeal calm. "This incident showed me that I'm unfit for being the mayor of this great city. Effective immediately, I will resign from my position." He slid off the shoulders, and Daunte could see he was trembling with emotion. "I…I'm so sorry. Daunte, Cleric Farzin, and everyone—please forgive me!" he bent down to his knees and did a full kowtow to the crowd in front of him. "Please forgive me for being such a weak man!"

"Don't be so hard on yourself," Farzin said, walking over to him. Daunte saw Farzin waved to him, and Daunte pushed his way through the crowd towards them. "You were put in a situation you shouldn't have been put into. I can't really blame you for doubting us when what happened today seemed so…out of the realm of reality."

Eamon however shook his head and stood up. "I still failed Uaminifu, and so I can do no better than to resign from office. I…" he scrubbed the tears off his face and looked to Daunte as he came into view. "I owe you everything, Daunte. I did a terrible thing, and I…" he collected himself briefly before straightening up. "I owe you. And so I will pledge my life to your service."

The citizens gasped in shock, and Daunte gaped at Eamon. "I've served a government that proved today that even the most faithful and loyal servant to Nagar is merely an expendable tool to them. I cannot in good conscience be a good shepherd to such monsters ever again. But you, Daunte—you and your soldiers defended us, despite being outnumbered. Despite the fact that we doubted you and _attacked_ you, you defended us anyway." He gestured to his own chest. "I can do no better than to be _your_ good shepherd and overthrow this tyrannical regime. If you would have me, my life is yours."

Daunte found himself grinning, and he laughed slightly and accepted his handshake. "Welcome abroad, Lord Eamon."

To their surprise, the citizens of Uaminifu erupted into loud cheers. Both Eamon and Daunte were then mobbed by people. Daunte yelped as hands grabbed him and he found himself lifted up into the air. The people chanted his name and cheered, and all Daunte could do was simply stare as they crowd-surfed him around.

"Well," Farzin mused as they watched the display. "It's amazing to see how much inspiration one teenaged boy can invoke in tens of thousands of people."

"It was group effort, but it was Daunte's perseverance that brought us all here," Gunther said. He signaled to the others to come forward. "We need to get back quickly and check on the rest of the Army. The presence of the Sheikh seems to indicate that they may not have been on recess after all, so there's a very real possibility that Lord Bearyl and the others walked into an ambush."

"What if the Sheikh returns with his forces?" Felicity asked.

"We all saw Sheikh Keiran Umed draw his weapon on the High Cleric. He's definitely not coming back here. But yeah, let's station maybe two dozen soldiers here to keep an eye on the city. I'm sure the people will be more than happy with our presence."

"And what about Daunte?" Priscilla laughed, gesturing to him.

Gunther watched him for a moment and snorted. "He'll be all right. For the moment."

* * *

Rune of Restoration

 **Level 1: Howl – Restores Half HP/1 MP Spell**

 **Level 2: Berate – 200 DMG across all enemies**


	27. Chapter Three: Part Six

Part Six

With twenty-four soldiers stationed with the city guards, Daunte was nervous that it wouldn't be enough to protect Uaminifu. In the end, however, he knew it was better than nothing. And to his shock he found himself with at least _two thousand_ volunteers for the Liberation Army, men and women of all ages.

 _This was definitely a victory. I don't like that 100 people died, but it could've been far worse. And I'm bringing back volunteers who joined because they believe in our cause, and not because I had to bribe them._

Daunte wanted to take an opportunity to personally go into Uaminifu and find more volunteers, but Gunther quickly squashed that idea.

"Daunte, we gotta get our injured back to headquarters as soon as possible," he told Daunte. "And then there's the whole matter of that High Cleric. The fact that he appeared during the battle shows that the High Clerics did _not_ go on recess as they were scheduled to do. Our Army is going to need our help."

Daunte nodded his head in agreement and smiled. "We have enough volunteers to have a standing army again. I'm sure Lord Bearyl will be pleased with this good news."

Gunther's smile twitched, but he said nothing. "We'll draw far too much attention if we march like this. We should have Viki teleport us back to headquarters. Plus, it will allow for our injured to be seen to much faster."

"I agree." Daunte went looking for Viki, and thankfully it didn't take long to find her. She was standing stationary by herself, fiddling with her nose plug uncomfortably. He felt sorry for her standing alone, but he caught a conversation from one of the volunteers that gave him pause.

"She took that nose plug off for a moment, and one of the horses gave her such a spook that she sneezed—and the bloody horse disappeared! We still haven't found it!"

Then he saw some reasoning as to _why_ people were leaving Viki alone. But he made sure to approach her front the front and to not startle her. "Viki?"

"Oh, Lord Daunte." Viki smiled brightly at him. "Can I help you?"

"Would you mind teleporting all of us back to headquarters?"

"I-I will give it my best! I'm better at teleporting smaller groups than this, but so long as everyone concentrates—and so long as _I_ stay concentrated—then all of us should arrive just fine!"

"Thank you, Viki." Daunte looked out over the crowd and realized that it would be difficult to get everyone's attention at once. He signaled to Sharon. "Can you get their attention for me, please?"

"Sure," Sharon said. Suna was cuddled to her chest and she leaned down to whisper in its ear. The dragon then opened its mouth and let out a loud roar. It worked to startle everyone, silencing the conversations around them. Daunte held up his hands to reassure the crowd that everything was fine. "We're going to go to headquarters now," he announced. The rest of his main party began converging around them. "Viki has been kind enough to volunteer to teleport us all instantaneously. But in order for the teleportation to succeed, we need everyone's cooperation! I want you all to take hands, close your eyes, and focus on our target location! Focus on an encampment of tents south of here! Keep your minds focused on that location, and Viki will safely teleport you there!"

Soft murmurs of apprehension rose from the crowd, but everyone began to comply. They linked hands and closed their eyes. Several even began praying.

"If Viki succeeds in teleporting all these people, then _you'll_ succeed at winning the people over," Gunther said as the group took hands.

"If Viki succeeds, then that only proves just how powerful she really is," Daunte corrected him. "All _I'm_ doing is organizing everyone. She's the one doing the most work."

"T-Thank you, Lord Daunte," Viki stammered. She looked a little meek though as she stepped forward and raised her staff. "Everyone! Focus your minds! Here—we—go!"

Daunte grabbed both Roen and Felicity's hands and focused his mind on their desired location. He felt a whoosh of air and his feet lifted off the ground slightly. Several screams of shock startled him though, and he opened his eyes.

"W-W-Where did you all come from?!" a wounded Liberation Army soldier shrieked.

Daunte blinked several times to clear his vision. He sighed with relief as he recognized the tents stretched out before him and he quickly turned around. "I-Is everyone accounted for?"

The entire assembly quickly did a headcount and just two minutes later Daunte got the result. "Everyone is here," Eamon reassured him.

Daunte sighed again in relief and turned to Viki. "Excellent job."

"T-Thank you," Viki said, bowing slightly.

"Guys?" Gunther said suddenly.

Daunte turned back around to the encampment and gave pause. When they had left the soldiers were still mobilizing for battle. Now it had appeared the battle had ended—and it hadn't ended well.

Bodies of injured were lying everyone. Those who weren't injured—and even some who _were_ injured but just not injured as badly—were tending to the wounded. Daunte did not see one single person who was unscathed.

 _Holy Nagar. What on earth happened?!_

"Clara!" Gunther suddenly shouted, surging forward. Daunte and his friends followed, and several volunteers scattered to tend to the injured. "Clara, what the hell happened?!"

The poor doctor looked so fatigue that she looked ready to collapse. Daunte started to raise his right hand when Clara spoke. "W…We marched into a trap."

"O-Oh no," Felicity gasped, pressing a hand to her mouth.

"So the High Clerics didn't go on recess," Farzin breathed. "This is very shocking. T-They rushed that deplorable vote just to get it done before their recess, but they didn't go on it?!" he pressed a hand to his forehead. "W-Was that all just a ploy, then?!"

"I see the lot of you fared better than we did."

"Al—" Gunther burst out Allise's name, but the word died in his throat. Fury immediately filled his face when he saw the woman in question, and Daunte's stomach turned. The whole left side of Allise's face was covered in purple bruises, and her right arm was in a sling. She looked surprisingly in high spirits though as she surveyed the entourage Daunte brought back. "Well…this will make up for all the soldiers we lost today."

"Are you all right?" Gunther spoke in a soft tone as he looked her over.

"I survived," was Allise's only response to the question. "But the battle…we were utterly defeated. We didn't even get remotely close to Mlkwt Alsmwat—the Holy Army surrounded us in Winter Hill. We've lost over half of our Army."

Daunte felt physically ill, and he surveyed the injured around them once more. _We…We already lost so much in the ambush leading to the Sheikh's Garrison. Now we've lost even more than that!_

"D…Damn him!" an injured soldier shouted from his bedroll. Clara knelt down beside him. "Damn Lord Bearyl! I heard him! I heard Lord Caesar try to call for the retreat, but Lord Bearyl overruled him! H-H-H-H-H-He was so _sure_ that nothing was wrong, and forced us to keep marching! But we marched right into a massacre!"

"Oh, are you kidding me?" Priscilla growled, slapping a hand over her eyes. "He ignored the advice of _his own strategist_?!"

"I would say that I'm surprised, but I'm not," Farzin said.

Eamon quickly moved to Daunte's side. "I pledged myself to you, and my citizens pledged themselves to you. B-But I didn't know that we would be serving a leader who lacked sound judgment!"

Daunte felt guilty at bringing them here like this. They had obviously pledged themselves to the Liberation Army because of Daunte, and _not_ because of Bearyl Lutis. He knew that Eamon was now afraid that the volunteers from Uaminifu would have their lives thrown away from seriously poor decisions.

 _I need to prove to them that they made the right decision to join us._

Unable to handle the suffering that surrounded him any longer, Daunte raised his right hand. "Howl!" he shouted.

The Rune of Restoration glowed, and Daunte concentrated all of his strength into the power of the rune. A glow filled the air and spread out, reaching as many injured as it could. He started feeling dizzy, but he didn't stop concentrating. He didn't care how much strength he poured into the power of the spell, so long as it worked and healed those around him.

By the time the spell finished he almost fainted. Farzin grabbed him from behind and held him steady on his feet. "I've got you, my Lord."

But he got the desired effect. Because of how widespread the healing spell was it didn't fully heal the injured around them. But as Daunte's vision swam he saw that people were sitting up on their bedrolls, and Clara looked less tired, and the bruises were gone from Allise's face. She was even removing her arm from her sling.

"I…Is everyone—" was all Daunte could manage before the world turned dark.

* * *

 _He could see the ocean from where he sat. He knew Father often sat in this same spot, just staring for hours on end. Daunte didn't know how much peace he could get from it until that moment._

 _A soft mumble to his left startled him, and he turned his head. Arin was just five years old, but the child was curled up on his side facing Daunte, fast asleep. Daunte couldn't help but laugh and he poked his little brother in his chubby cheek. The child barely stirred._

" _Do you know why we fight?"_

 _Daunte jumped at hearing his mother's voice and turned. But Mother wasn't talking to him. She was facing a tall man, a man that Daunte knew was his father. But he—Daunte couldn't see his face. It looked like it was covered with a white light._

" _I know why we fight," his father said. "We fight to make those bastards pay!"_

" _Please don't use such language. Our sons can hear you."_

" _They took everything away from me. My father, my life—I've made it my mission to make them pay!"_

" _I understand," Phoebe responded. "And I understand that it was your anger that brought you here, and it's your anger that caused our meeting. But—But is it only your anger that drives you?"_

 _Daunte's father didn't respond for a long moment. Daunte stretched out on his stomach and leaned his chin onto his arms as he watched his parents._

"… _No," he finally responded. "No. It's not just that. I'm fighting for my boys—for_ _ **our**_ _boys. I'm fighting for you. Anger is what has guided me, but you—you showed me that there's much more worth fighting for. I'm fighting for all of you. So that none of you have to wake up in fear of persecution. I'm fighting so that honest people with integrity—people like you—take back this country from those disgusting murderers. I…I'm fighting because that's the right thing to do."_

 _Daunte saw his mother reach out and press a hand to his father's cheek, even though he still could not see his father's face. "Thank you. All of those reasons…that's why I'm fighting too. That's why I'm working so hard to end this insanity. For your sake, for the sake of our children…and for everyone else in Nagarea."_

* * *

Daunte opened his eyes slowly. He saw Clara leaning over him, and just beyond Clara he saw Tidur watching them with worry.

"Easy," Clara said when he tried to sit up. "Just lie back and relax for a moment, Daunte." She eased him back down onto the bedroll and laughed softly. "What have I told you about overexerting yourself with that Rune?"

Daunte shook his head and closed his eyes. "They—Everyone was suffering. I had to…do something."

"And we greatly appreciate what you did for us. But _please_ remember that you're still human, despite possessing a True Rune, and as a human you do have limitations."

"Daunte."

Daunte quickly opened his eyes again as Arin grabbed for his hand. His little brother looked worried. "Are you okay?"

"Yes," Daunte said, squeezing his hand. "We…We succeeded in preventing the massacre at Uaminifu."

"So the High Clerics really did sanction a massacre of one of their most loyal cities?" Tidur said softly. She shook her head. "T-That's horrifying."

"Daunte." Both Roen and Felicity quickly entered the tent. "Daunte, are you okay?" Felicity asked.

"Y-Yes," Daunte said. He slowly sat up again, and ignored Clara's grunt of disapproval. "What's wrong?"

"After you collapsed, Gunther, Farzin, and Lord Eamon went to make their report to Lord Bearyl," Roen said grimly. "It's…not going well."

"T-Then I must go, too," Daunte said. He started to stand but his vision swam slightly. "You _really_ should rest," Clara admonished him.

"I'll rest after I speak to Lord Bearyl." Still holding onto Arin's hand, Daunte took careful steps towards Roen and Felicity. "How long have I been unconscious?"

"Just fifteen minutes," Roen said. He nodded his head towards the tent flap. "They're still in Lord Bearyl's tent giving the reports."

Daunte nodded. "Let's hurry, then."

"I'm going to come with you," Clara demanded, straightening. "I want to stay by you in case you collapse again."

"Clara, there are people far more inj—"

"Your reckless use of your True Rune has ensured that the entire camp no longer has life-threatening injuries. I can spare a few minutes, I promise you."

"I will keep watching over the injured while you're gone," Tidur promised. "If anything happens, I will send one of my daughters to come and get you."

Clara nodded. "Thank you. Shall we?"

The group departed the tent and quickly made their way towards Bearyl's tent. They were just over six meters away and Daunte could hear the shouting from the tent. It filled him with dread.

Along the way they were repeatedly stopped by soldiers and civilians who wanted to give thanks to Daunte. Even though they were in a hurry, Daunte still took the time to accept their gratitude.

"Thank you so _much_!"

"—had eight broken ribs! I couldn't even breathe until you casted that spell!"

"I wished you had been there with us! Comparing the results of _your_ mission with Lord Bearyl's, it's pretty clear which one of you is more competent!"

"Did the zealots really accept you?"

They finally reached the tent, and Daunte stepped inside. He jumped slightly when Gunther punched the table in frustration.

"—just listen to me!" Gunther thundered. "We were right! The massacre was very real, and had we not been there the entire city of Uaminifu would've been slaughtered! But thanks to our efforts—thanks to Daunte's efforts—we managed to save all but 100 people!"

"Do you _really_ expect me to believe that Sheikh Keiran Umed brought a force of 400 soldiers to slaughter _eighty-five thousand_ civilians?" Bearyl demanded incredulously. "There's no way such a small Army would ever be able to slay so many people!"

"Lord Bearyl, I've told you this repeatedly," Eamon interjected. "The massacre attempt was real. My guards were _really_ attacked by the Sheikh's forces, and they _really_ advanced upon my city to kill my people. And like Gunther has told you, if it weren't for the Liberation Army, we would've lost more than 100 people."

Bearyl scoffed, but Eamon quickly cut him off. "But!" he snapped. "But I firmly believe that we wouldn't have lost _any_ lives if you had sent more than 150 soldiers to defend my city!"

"So you're blaming me for your losses?!" Bearyl snapped at him. He jabbed a finger at Eamon. "Because from the sound of things, you wouldn't have lost so many people if _you_ hadn't stupidly ignored the warnings we had sent you!"

Eamon turned purple with rage, and Daunte quickly stepped forward. "Lord Bearyl!"

To his surprise, the tent abruptly fell silent. Farzin and Gunther even stepped aside as Daunte moved forward to stand in front of the table. Bearyl stood on the other side, with Varnaz at his left and Caesar at his right. Varnaz looked like he had a broken nose, and Caesar looked so gaunt that Daunte was certain the strategist hadn't gotten any sleep in the last day or so.

"So," Bearyl said, drawing Daunte's attention back to him. "You returned victorious." But his voice was full of venom.

"Yes," Daunte said calmly. "Our force of 150 soldiers successfully defended Uaminifu. We lost two dozen soldiers however, and 100 civilians died. But we have gained the support of the entire city, and I have brought back with me two thou—"

Bearyl interrupted him by clapping. But the motions were slow, indicating that it was not a sincere round of applause. A feeling of discomfort settled in Daunte's stomach.

"Congratulations," Bearyl told him sardonically. "You got what you wanted. You stole my soldiers away from my cause, and got your way. And hey—it only cost me three-quarters of my Army. But what does that matter so long as you show me that you're right and I'm wrong?"

Daunte flushed, and he heard Roen and Felicity hiss with anger behind him. "I-I'm sorry," Daunte stammered. "I'm sorry for the soldiers who d—"

"Oh really? You're sorry, Daunte? Here, why don't I bring you to the families of the soldiers who died?" Bearyl motioned to him as he walked around the table. "Why don't you tell _them_ how sorry you are that they died? I mean, it's because of _you_ that we didn't have the proper forces to march upon Mlkwt Alsmwat. It's because of the fact that you decided that your _detour_ was more important than ending this war that they died. So come on, Daunte!" Bearyl glared at him. Daunte flinched, because he saw genuine hate in his eyes. "Go to them! Tell them how sorry you are that they died because of you!"

"HEY!" Roen shouted, advancing on Bearyl. "Daunte didn't kill the soldiers! _You're_ the one who walked into a trap! _You're_ the one who assumed the High Clerics were going on recess! _You're_ the one who pushed the Army into an ambush! So don't you _dare_ pin this on Daunte! He not only saved a city, but he brought back two-thousand volunteers! _Two thousand_! And he didn't need to _bribe_ them, either!"

Bearyl glared murderously at Roen, and it looked like he wanted to strike the younger man. Gunther stepped forward. "My Lord, it's true. We brought back two thousand volunteers who have pledged themselves to our cause. We—"

"I'm really sad to see what little value you hold in our troops, Gunther."

Gunther blinked in confusion. "W-What?"

Bearyl sighed heavily and walked back around the table. "We lost so many soldiers, but what does that matter when we have two thousand other people to be our cannon fodder? Isn't that right, Gunther?"

"N-No, that's not what I meant at all!" Gunther sputtered indignantly. "I was only—"

"I know what you meant, Gunther. You're _gloating_ like you always do."

Gunther was twitching violently, and he began trembling. Daunte was afraid he was going to launch across the table and physically assault Bearyl when the Commander of the Liberation Army spoke again. "Never mind. I'm deflecting. I had such great aspirations of ending this war, and instead the Army has become more hobbled than before. There is only one person who is to blame for this mess."

Daunte gaped at him in shock. _Is…Is he taking responsibility for his poor decisions for once?!_ He glanced at Gunther and saw the other man visibly relax.

But Bearyl quickly squashed that idea as he turned to Caesar. "And that person is you."

Caesar gaped at him in shock, and the people within the tent shifted with disbelief. Including Varnaz. Bearyl then advanced upon him and Caesar took a couple of steps back.

"You are my strategist," Bearyl said with cold fury. "More than that, you're a _Silverberg_. You're supposed to be giving me the best advice that will guide me to victory. Now look at us—we are without a headquarters, and I have suffered two consecutive losses that have crippled my Army. Do you call this a victory?"

"My Lord—" Caesar began.

"DO YOU CALL THIS A VICTORY?!" Bearyl bellowed out. His shrieked rumbled in Daunte's ears.

"My Lord, I have given you the very best advice I can offer you!" Caesar shouted back. "But what the hell am I supposed to do when you don't yield my advice?!"

"Don't you _dare_ pin this on me! _You're_ the Army strategist! _You're_ supposed to give the best strategies! All your strategies have done is lead me to _failure_! And that's because YOU'RE a failure, Caesar!"

"Look, I'm a _damned_ good strategist!" Caesar raged. He looked ready to strike Bearyl. "I was the leading strategist of the Second Fire Bringer War! I not only helped win that war, but I helped save the damn _world_! And hell—I'm no Lucretia Merces, but I've given you the absolute best advice in my arsenal! All of our failures—and I _do_ mean all of them—have been when _you_ have defied me and when _you_ have made decisions without consulting me, and by overruling me! I will accept the responsibility of the failures of this Army, but don't you EVER question the person I am, because I did not cause any of this!"

It was incredibly hard to watch the commander and the strategist argue so fiercely. And unfortunately, Bearyl only turned his nose up to Caesar's words. "You're just a child deflecting. It's no wonder I haven't won yet when I have _you_ at my side."

Caesar was breathing so quickly and so harshly with rage that Daunte became more and more nervous. After a moment the strategist ducked his head low and let a long, harsh sigh. For several moments there was nothing but silence in the tent as everyone braced themselves…and waited.

Finally, Caesar raised his head. He no longer looked angry, but was smiling his usual lazy smile. "Effectively immediately, I'm resigning from my post."

A collective gasp of shock filled the tent. Bearyl flinched, and the man even looked stricken for a moment. Caesar continued. "It has become abundantly clear to me that you don't see any value in me. You have your mind made up about what you need to do in order to achieve victory, and nothing that nobody says will allow you to change your mind. Including me." he folded his arms over his chest. "As it stands now, this Army is not going to succeed. And to be perfectly frank Lord Bearyl, you're not somebody I want to die for. So…" he turned to face the group before him and bowed deeply. "Thank you for your accommodations everyone, and I wish you all the best of luck." He picked up a satchel that was sitting on a chair and slung it over his shoulder. Then he calmly walked around the group and exited the tent.

Nobody spoke for a solid two minutes. Daunte's jaw was hanging open. _O-Oh no. We've lost our strategist. We've lost the Army's_ _ **only**_ _strategist!_

"Don't you _ever_ come back!" Bearyl suddenly shouted, though the words had little meaning since Caesar was already gone. "Warn the guards to not allow that traitorous slouch back here again!"

"My Lord—" Varnaz began.

"Now that he's gone, we can finally focus on sensible planning that will achieve us victory!"

"My Lord—"

"I know the loss of a strategist may lower morale, but Caesar Silverberg only proved to me that there's nothing he can do that _I_ can't do better!"

" _Bearyl_!" Varnaz finally shouted, startling everyone.

Bearyl looked up and straightened. "Varnaz, what's wrong?"

Varnaz suddenly glared at the group in front of them. "Everyone, leave us now."

"Wait a minute, what are you talking about?" Bearyl demanded.

"Leave," Varnaz snapped at the group. "I won't tell you again."

Daunte and the others heeded his words and immediately made their way to the tent's flap. Daunte noted, however, that Gunther was staying behind. Daunte tugged Arin with him, and the tent flap barely closed behind him when another violent shouting match erupted from inside the tent. Daunte paused, and simply turned to watch the tent in grim horror. The three yelling voices overlapped, making it impossible to understand the words. He slowly turned around to walk away, and paused at what he saw before him. Every single person he saw—soldier or civilian—was watching the main tent in silence. Several looked very angry, while others—including the men—looked on the verge of tears.

Daunte let out a short breath, unable to make a facial expression that _didn't_ mirror theirs. He looked down at Arin, but the boy looked angry. Daunte nodded to him in silence, and led him away from the tent.

* * *

"Don't leave us! _Please_!"

Daunte didn't bother checking to see where his friends had gone to. His first priority was to look for Caesar. Arin tagged along with him, and despite his sour demeanor he was healthy enough to be on his feet for so long.

He found Caesar quickly enough, surrounded by two dozen soldiers. Most of them were blocking the path leading out of camp. Some of them had their hands clasped in a pleading manner.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I have resigned my post," Caesar told them calmly. "I cannot stay in this camp any longer. I must leave."

"But you can't leave us!" a female soldier shouted. "You're our Army strategist! You're our _only_ strategist! You're one of the reasons we're still alive right now! If you leave, then we're all doomed!"

"Yes, I was the Liberation Army strategist. However, I'm sure none of you can forget that it was _my_ strategy that led us into an ambush. So many of us died and were seriously injured yesterday because I failed. As the strategist, I am responsible for failures like these."

"Oh, just stop it!" another snapped. "Stop covering for Lord Bearyl! _I_ was in your unit, remember?! I was there when it was clear we were walking into a trap, and you tried to order our retreat! But Lord Bearyl ordered that we keep marching! Lord Bearyl caused our heavy losses, not you! If he had only listened to you, then this wouldn't have happened!"

"We wouldn't even _be_ out here if he had listened to you!" another raged. "If he hadn't thrown that kid out, then that kid wouldn't have been arrested and wouldn't have been able to sell us out to the Holy Army! Everything bad that has happened to us is HIS fault, not yours!"

"Everyone, please calm down," Caesar implored, raising his hands. "You're giving me too much credit. I share in the blame for all the misfortune that has befallen you. Had I been more competent at my job, then you would all be better off. I'm fairly certain Lord Bearyl will find another—"

"If you're quitting, then _I'm_ quitting too!" someone snapped. "I've sacrificed too much for Lord Bearyl, and for what?! To be led into ambush after ambush by an incompetent blowhard?! If you're not here to help him, we're all surely going to die!"

Several other voices joined in, proclaiming that _they_ were going to quit as well if Caesar left. Daunte squeezed Arin's hand tighter, not knowing what to say or do.

But Caesar raised his hands higher, appealing for calm. "Everyone, _please_! You cannot abandon the cause now! If you do, then the Holy Army is going to win! _Nothing_ is going to change! You must continue to press on and persevere! Your cause is just and you are fighting an enemy that needs to be taken down! Please—please have faith!"

"'Have faith'?! We're supposed to have faith in a leader who doesn't listen to _his own strategist's_ advice?! A leader who throws away our lives because think all of his own decision are always right?!"

Caesar looked to be at a loss for words. Daunte surged forward to come to his side. "Caesar."

"Ah, Daunte!" the strategist looked pleased to see him. Daunte vaguely noticed that the other soldiers immediately silenced upon his arrival. "Just the person I wanted to see!"

"Lord Daunte, please talk to him!" one of the soldiers pleaded. "Please tell him to stay!"

"Lord Daunte?" Arin echoed. He looked at Daunte. "Y-You have a lordship, Big Brother?"

Daunte actually didn't know why everyone was suddenly addressing him with such an honorific, but Caesar took him by the arm before he could correct everyone. "Let's have a word in private."

Daunte allowed Caesar to lead him to a quieter section of the camp. They passed by Viki, who looked like she was asleep on her feet. Caesar paused to straighten the nose plug on her nose. And they also passed Desiree, who was trying to lift spirits with her dancing. She wasn't having much success.

"Caesar," Daunte said when they reached their destination. "You're not really leaving, are you?"

"Daunte, I've publically resigned," Caesar reminded him. "In addition to that, I insulted Lord Bearyl in front of his men. My staying after such would be detrimental to the Army."

"Your departure is detrimental to the Army!" Daunte insisted. "I know, okay?! I know you've been trying so hard to make us succeed! It's not your fault that Lord Bearyl hasn't been listening to you!"

"But as a strategist, I should have the capabilities of swaying my commander into believing that my ideas are sound," Caesar said. "In the last couple of months I have not been able to do so. So I do share in the failure for not having the high enough persuasion to convince Lord Bearyl that he can trust me, and trust in my ideas."

"You…" Daunte stepped closer. "But you already were a strategist during wartime, right? The Second Fire Bringer War?"

"My anger got the better of me and allowed my ego to swell out of control," Caesar said. "True, I was a strategist during that war, but I was just one of many. It wasn't by my wit alone that my side succeeded. There were many factors that contributed to our victory."

"Yes, but your side still won," Daunte pointed out. "That should show to Lord Bearyl, more than anything, that you are worth it!"

"D-Did you guys really save the world?" Arin said.

"Sure," Caesar said, laughing slightly. "We fought against a foe who was trying to destroy a True Rune. And as you both know, the 27 True Runes are woven into the fabric of our universe. If even _one_ of these runes are destroyed, our world would collapse onto itself."

"B-But _why_?!" Daunte sputtered. "Why did this person try to destroy a True Rune?!"

Caesar shrugged. "I suppose he was trying to fight fate. But it doesn't really matter—we stopped him."

There was a long moment of silence. Caesar sighed, looked skyward as he put his hands in his pockets, and looked at his surroundings. "You know, when I came here I didn't really care about what was going on here."

"…What?" Daunte said flatly.

"I knew nothing about this country. The last time there was contact by anyone from within this country was nearly three decades ago. The rest of world knows nothing about Nagarea. And during the war I…" he frowned deeply. "My brother. He had been on the opposing side."

"Y-Your brother?!" Daunte sputtered. "Your brother wanted to destroy the world?!"

"Actually, no," Caesar said. "Albert had no intention of ending the world. Fact of the matter is that he joined the other side because he knew it was doomed to failure. He never once believed on what L—what his commander believed. He knew that it wouldn't be successful. All that mattered to him was _showing off_." Caesar practically spat out the words. "He helped orchestrate race wars, _genocide_ , and a completely unnecessary war that was doomed to failure just to demonstrate his _superior skills_. People died— _thousands_ of people died—but all that matter to him was getting his name out there. And you know the crazy thing? He was _right_." Caesar snapped his teeth and scrubbed a hand over his face. "He got everything he wanted. All those people died, lives were ruined—and you know where my brother is right now? He's in Zelant! He has a _government position_! After everything he did, he got exactly what he wanted in the end!"

Daunte had never seen Caesar this furious, not even in Bearyl's presence. Both Arin and him remained silent as Caesar continued. "So I thought—I thought I could do better! I would go to a country where I would do even greater things than him! And! And I wouldn't need to commit mass genocide to achieve my goals! So yes!" he turned to face Daunte. "I came here for my own selfish reasons! B-But never in my wildest dreams did I ever imagine just how _bad_ things were here! T-T-That the government had been overtaken by ex-assassins who are still stuck in their glory days! I…" He shook his head and took several deep breaths to calm down. "I wanted…I wanted to make a difference, Daunte. I may have come here m-maybe to boost my own ego, but just the amount of sheer suffering here just makes me…so I acted on impulse. I aligned myself with the first person I met who had a large enough network of influence and support for me to make a difference!"

"Lord Bearyl?" Daunte asked. Caesar nodded his confirmation. "But Lord Bearyl…he…"

"I wanted to make a difference," Caesar said. His tone had grown quiet. "No matter what my reasons were for coming here, I genuinely want reform here, Daunte. But it was a mistake to pledge myself to Bearyl Lutis. He…Daunte, you have to understand that these problems between Bearyl and I are not a new phenomenon. Bearyl is a man of insufferable pride, and he's so use to people agreeing with him because _everybody_ agreed with him when he was still a Cleric. But because he's use to it, he will never take any criticism and he will never admit when he is wrong. And he…Daunte, you should know that he didn't start the Liberation Army out of a desire to make the country better."

Daunte gaped at him. Caesar continued. "Bearyl, he…he's driven by spite. He was a brilliant Cleric and for all intents and purposes _should've_ been elected to the Cabinet of High Clerics. It's true that the charges that got him defrocked were fabricated, but he…he's not doing all of this because it's the right thing to do. He just wants revenge on the High Clerics. He wants to make them pay for denying him what should've been his. A true leader should be driven by what is best for everyone, and not solely what is best for himself. I knew from the beginning that Bearyl Lutis didn't have what it took to be a good leader, but I ignored his shortcomings and mistakenly threw my support behind him. But I can't do that now."

Daunte still did not know what to say. Caesar had completely opened up to him—just a grunt in the Liberation Army. He was still going to leave. And Daunte didn't know what to say to make him stay.

"But I digress," Caesar said, straightening. "What about you, Daunte? Are you going to stay? Do you want to still go back to Prince Surya Falenas's offer and move to Falena? What do _you_ want done about the current state of things?"

What did _he_ want? What did it matter what Daunte wanted? He had absolutely no say in what happened with the Liberation Army!

 _I can't criticize Caesar for joining the Liberation Army for selfish reasons because_ _ **I**_ _joined the Army too for selfish reasons. But do I stay here under Bearyl Lutis? Or go to Falena or Harmonia o-or somewhere else? Damn it all, what do I do?!_

But Daunte remembered his parents. His memories were still so vague, but he knew his parents had died trying to make Nagarea a better place. He knew that he could do no better than to follow their example. "I want reform," he said softly. "I want to get rid of the High Clerics and make things better for the people of Nagarea."

Caesar smiled, and it wasn't his usual lazy smile. "You know, I'm not going to go to Viki and have her teleport me to some random place. I plan on doing some traveling before I leave. I don't want to leave things as they are, but I can't support the Liberation Army so long as Bearyl Lutis is leader."

Daunte reluctantly nodded. "I-I understand."

"But." Caesar suddenly stepped closer to him. "If that changes…then I can easily be persuaded back."

Daunte's eyes widened. Caesar clapped him on the shoulder. "Stay in good health, both of you. Until we meet again." He then turned and walked away.

Daunte felt foolish just standing there, watching Caesar walk into the horizon until he blended in. No! He should've stopped him! Convinced him somehow to stay!

"Daunte," Arin said, looking up at him. "W-Was Lord Caesar telling us to fire Lord Bearyl as leader?!"

Daunte swallowed thickly, and tried to formulate the words. "I—"

"Daunte! Arin!"

Both boys were startled by the shout and turned. Roen and Felicity were running towards them. "We need to talk," Roen said once they reached them. " _Now_."

* * *

Daunte made sure they hadn't been followed, and sat down beside Arin on a rock. Felicity looked grim and Roen looked furious.

"So, Caesar quit," Roen surmised. "The only strategist this entire Army quit. What exactly is going to happen to us now?"

"…I don't know," Daunte admitted softly. "Lord Bearyl has basically had the run of things lately because he kept overruling Caesar's ideas. But at least with Caesar here there could be a workaround with some of Lord Bearyl's more…"

"Stupid decisions?" Roen offered. Daunte nodded.

"And now, with Caesar gone, Lord Bearyl has no filter for any of his harebrained ideas," Felicity said. "And recent events have shown that…" she left the sentence hanging.

"Recent events have shown that the Liberation Army has absolutely no chance of winning this war," Roen said. "Bearyl Lutis is completely incapable of leading this Army. At this rate he's literally going to get everybody here killed, and I'll bet you all the bits in the world that once he gets captured and executed, he'll still blame somebody else for his failures!"

Arin tugged on Daunte's hand, and Daunte looked at him. The child looked terrified. "Daunte…if we stay here we're going to die, aren't we?"

Daunte honestly didn't know what to say to him. They were damned no matter what because without the Liberation Army they were still on the run from having escaped the Dark Chasm.

 _I almost wish I could cut our losses and just flee to Falena as refugees. B-But I can't leave things the way they are! Running away only helps me! It doesn't help the children of the Dark Chasm, and it doesn't help anyone in Nagarea!_

…But. But there were some things even he couldn't deny.

"Roen," he said finally, looking up at his friend. "I…I agree with you. I want to do what's right for this country, but Bearyl Lutis isn't the right ruler for this country. Without Caesar here, who knows what else he will do? I…"

He let go of Arin's hand and slid an arm around his shoulders. "If we stay here, then we're doomed to die pointless deaths. I'm grateful for what the Army has given me, but I don't trust Bearyl Lutis with my life. We need to leave."


	28. Chapter Three: Part Seven

Part Seven

They had resolved to leave the Liberation Army. Arin didn't bother hiding his relief at Daunte's proclamation, although he did pose a very good question.

"Daunte, are we taking your allies with us? The ones you recruited?"

That was a good point. He knew the Liberation Army was going off in a _very_ bad direction, and it didn't sit well with him to leave the very people he'd recruited into the Army to this fate.

"That's a good point," Felicity agreed. "The people you recruited are really only here because of you, Daunte. I don't think they'd want to stay if you're not here."

"If they come with us, we'll be our own independent army though," Roen said. "Where would we go?"

"I think…I have an idea," Daunte said slowly. "There was a place where Arin and I lived before…" he waved a hand. "It's to the west of here, directly along the coast. I didn't bring it up earlier because of how far away it is from the Nagarean-Falenan border, but…"

"Well, it's better than nothing," Felicity said, nodding. "That settles it. We'll pack up, gather our allies, and leave."

"When we fled Daunte, I grabbed everything I could carry," Arin said as they walked back to camp. "Would you like to see it?"

It was the first time Daunte had even thought about it. He'd been so caught up in everything that was going on that he hadn't thought about if any of his meager possessions had been saved. "Thank you, Arin."

They covertly snuck back into camp, and luckily the overall mood was so morose that nobody was paying any attention to them. Daunte followed them back to the tent they'd all been sharing, and was surprised to find that Arin really had brought along all his minimal possessions. Unable to help himself he gave his little brother a quick hug before looking everything over. However, the item on top of his satchel gave him.

It was the letter Surya had written him.

Daunte carefully opened the repaired letter and reread it. He then frowned deeply, and tucked it into an inner pocket.

They left the tent, and Daunte had a genuinely sick feeling in the pit of his stomach. He didn't like this. He didn't like leaving the Liberation Army like this. But at the same time though, he felt like Bearyl Lutis had put him in an impossible position.

 _Serving that man has been thankless labor that has almost gotten me killed numerous times. It's far too risky to stay here under his command._

Daunte was still careful though, and approached each of his companions to let them know what was going on. He was almost surprised by their responses, but…

"You want me to leave with you?" Liron asked. "Of course I will."

"Is this a trick question?" Priscilla asked him sarcastically. "You had _better_ not leave me here with this idiot!"

"I owe _you_ my life," Eamon said. "As do my people. I owe Bearyl Lutis nothing."

"You're the one who recruited me," Cairoh said. "You're the one I have allegiance to."

"My livelihood was saved because of you," Gusoku said. "I can do no better than to stay by your side."

"This was inevitable," Oboro sighed. "But you must do what you must do. As do I. I will stay with you, my Lord."

"Sure," Shou said.

"I'm not leaving your side!" Sharon snapped. "I don't know anybody else here!"

"Y-You promised to watch over me," Viki said, nodding. "So I will stay with you."

"So much has happened, and things are only going to get worse," Tidur said. "I don't trust Lord Bearyl to take care of my daughters. I _do_ however trust you, Lord Daunte, so I will gladly go with you."

"I'll go where Mom goes," Ciana said bluntly.

"I'm not leaving my family's side!" Esther said. "And I'm certainly not staying here under that man's command!"

"Of course I will go with you," Desiree told him, smiling.

"You seem to be the only one with any damned sense around here," Farzin fumed. "So of course I'm going to stay by your side!"

And even people Daunte _didn't_ recruit were more than willing to agree with him.

"I-I almost died when we evacuated headquarters," Ichirou said softly. "I owe Lord Bearyl everything but he…no. I can't serve him like this anymore."

"We have been a slippery downward slope for a substantial amount of time," Jantu said. "I no longer believe we're going to win. I do believe however that if I stay I will die, and my death would be worthless."

"All right, why not?" Gizli said, shrugging.

After having talked to everyone, Daunte felt a great weight be lifted off his shoulders. _I've secured the safety of my allies. Now I can face Lord Bearyl._

Because he knew he _had_ to face the man and tell him point-blank they were quitting. They couldn't just waltz out of camp with so many soldiers after all. Daunte saw in Roen and Felicity's faces that they thought it was a bad idea, but neither voiced any complaints as they made their way to the main tent.

"They're _still_ fighting?!" Arin said incredulously as they came to a stop in front of the tent flap. Indeed, there were still several overlapping voices within the tent.

"It sounds like it's more people though this time," Felicity said.

Not wanting to stall any longer, Daunte pushed open the flap and went inside.

"Are you completely insane?!" Gunther hollered. "Or do you not care at all about succeeding?!"

"My Lord, this would literally be a suicide mission!" Allise also argued.

"No, it wouldn't," Bearyl retorted. "They would never see it coming! We would take them completely off-guard!"

"But to launch _another_ campaign against Mlkwt Alsmwat, while our numbers are so low, would not only ensure our defeat in battle, but also our defeat as an Army," Varnaz tried to speak calmly. "Lord Bearyl, our soldiers cannot move into battle so quickly! Not after the losses we suffered, and not while morale is so low!"

Bearyl sighed with impatience. "We can regain morale with this victory. The High Clerics would never expect a second attack so soon after the first, and they have most surely gone on recess now!"

"My Lord, we don't yet know—"

"Varnaz, ready the troops to march!"

Daunte felt his jaw drop as he watched the arguing before him. Was…Was Bearyl actually planning on marching on the capital _again_?! Was his grand plan to just throw Liberation Army soldiers, many of whom weren't fully recovered even after Daunte used his True Rune, at Mlkwt Alsmwat on the assumption that the enemy wouldn't see it coming?!

 _Now I know I've made the right decision._

"My Lord," Daunte announced loudly. To his surprise the arguing immediately silenced. Gunther and Allise even stood a little straighter as he approached the table. "M—"

"Who do you think you are, coming in here while we have a meeting?!" Bearyl snapped at him. "You have no place here, Daunte! You're just a grunt without rank!"

Daunte bristled. _I'm just a grunt? Then why have I put into command more than once?_ But he forced himself to calm down. "My Lord, we're here to stay goodbye."

"G-Goodbye?!" Allise gasped. Daunte shifted with discomfort at the distress in her voice.

"Yes," Daunte said. He kept his eyes on Bearyl. "We've come here to resign our posts in the Liberation Army."

"Varnaz, arrest them for treason!" Bearyl quickly responded. His nostrils flared and he glared murderously at Daunte. "You ungrateful little snot-nosed brat! After everything I've done for you—everything I've _sacrificed_ for you—and this is the thanks you give me?! Running away like a coward when the going gets tough?!"

"Don't you talk to my big brother like that!" Arin hollered. He stepped around Daunte to glare at Bearyl. "Daunte has done so much for this Army, and you've _never_ thanked him for anything! No, you treat him like he's a nuisance! You're so full of it that you think you're the _only one_ who's done anything for the Liberation Army! But the only think you've done is let your ego do the talking, and you've proven that you're completely useless as a leader!"

Bearyl looked so angry that Daunte was almost afraid he would attack Arin. Thankfully, Bearyl did not move from his spot but still addressed Arin with venom. "I'm not going to be insulted by a useless child like you."

"You _bastard_!" Daunte burst out, and almost launched himself across the table, but Arin bumped into him to stop him. "Yeah, I'm the useless child! That isn't news to me, my Lord! You've never stopped reminding me that I'm a useless child!"

"You owe me your life!" Bearyl barked at Arin. "If it weren't for me, you would've died!"

"Dr. Clara was the one who saved me, not you!" Arin snapped back. "If you'd had your way, I would've been thrown out like you threw Zander out!"

Bearyl laughed humorlessly. "You—You're all a bunch of ignorant children! You don't have any idea what the real world is like, but you think you do because you believe that you're the only ones who are right!"

"We survived the Dark Chasm!" Roen retorted. "Trust us—we know plenty about the real world!"

Daunte hesitated, feeling condemning words on his lips for Bearyl Lutis. He knew if he said what he truly thought that there would be no turning back—they could never come back into the Army. And he also knew saying the words would be useless, because Bearyl would never listen to them.

 _I'll still say them anyways._

"Bearyl Lutis," he said, deliberately withholding the use of Bearyl's title. "This Army is doomed to failure, and it's because of you. _You_ are the catalyst for everything bad that has happened!"

"You—"

"We lost an alliance with Falena because of you!" Daunte shouted. He pulled out Surya's letter and shoved it at Gunther. "Read it, Gunther! Read what Prince Surya said about the Army!"

Gunther opened the letter. His face was incredibly grim. "Ah… _'I have a feeling that Aunt Lym will reject the alliance proposal, but I want you to know that it's not because of the Liberation Army, or because we're isolating ourselves from Nagarea. If the Parliament ends up voting against the alliance, it will be_ _ **strictly**_ _because of Bearyl Lutis. Aunt Lym doesn't trust him, and though we know the rest of the Army is not like him he is nevertheless the leader of the Army. If we cannot trust the leader of a potential ally, then any sort of alliance would be doomed from the start. So no matter what happens, I want you to know that Falena isn't going to forget what you did for my family. If we vote against you, it is a vote against Lutis and_ _ **not**_ _a—'_ "

"Give me that!" Bearyl growled, ripping it from Gunther's hands. He quickly scanned the letter and scoffed. "These are just the words of a pampered prince, not of Queen Lymsleia herself!" then he ripped the letter clean in half.

"NO!" Felicity shouted.

"How dare you!" Roen shouted. They both tried to surge forward but Daunte held up his arms to stop them. Still, it was difficult to stand there and watch Bearyl ripped to pieces his last and only correspondence with Surya.

"Anything else? Bearyl asked sarcastically, letting the tiny pieces of paper fall to the ground.

Daunte had to do a few breathing exercises in order to remain calm. It worked however as he stared at Bearyl. "Thank you for taking us in and giving us shelter. I really do wish you the best of luck. But this is not the best place for us to be right now, and I firmly believe that if we continue to follow you that we will all die. I'm sorry for abandoning you like this, but you have left me no other choice."

Bearyl folded his arms over his chest and glared at Varnaz. "I told you to arrest them. I won't tell you again!"

"Emergency!" Gunther suddenly shouted, startling everyone. "Allise, gather the rest of the generals! We're having an emergency meeting _right now_!"

"Emergency meeting?" Bearyl then looked at him. "What for?!"

"To vote you out as leader," Gunther said defiantly.

"W-WHAT?!"

"Allise, go now!"

"Right!" Allise quickly took off out of the tent.

"A-Are you out of your damned mind, Gunther?!" Bearyl hollered. "You're openly plotting MUTINY?!"

"We've suffered two consecutive losses, and the loss of our only strategist," Gunther said. "In addition, you have on your hands a mass desertion. You've clearly demonstrated that you're not fit for the chain of command."

"Mass desertion?!" Bearyl laughed sardonically. "I would hardly call four kids threatening to leave mass desertion!"

"Maybe. But once Daunte leaves you're not going to have many allies left."

"Varnaz!" Bearyl shouted, rounding upon his best friend. "Varnaz, I told you to arrest them! Do you not see that they're openly planning mutiny?!"

"My Lord, this is the system _you_ set up," Varnaz told him. "You said that it was okay to hold votes to dismiss people from office who are deemed unfit for command. It isn't mutiny when we're following the guidelines you instituted."

"I—You—"

"Wow, they're going to vote him out?!" Roen hissed. Daunte was also surprised. _T-They can vote a leader out at any time?! Then why didn't they do this BEFORE?!_

Allise quickly returned with two other soldiers. Daunte's brow raised. _Wait…didn't we have more generals? Holy Nagar…if this isn't a bigger sign of how great the losses have been; I don't know what is!_

"I've called this emergency meeting to bring into question the leadership capabilities of our current Commander," Gunther announced. "In short, Lord Bearyl Lutis has been responsible for two catastrophic losses—"

"Caesar caused those losses!" Bearyl hollered.

"Enabled the mass genocide of a hamlet due to inaction—"

"Lorik Varra should not have abandoned our cause!"

"And single-handedly cost us the alliance of a foreign power."

"And like I told you, those were the words of a prince without any political power! Hell, how do we know that Daunte didn't just write that letter himself?!"

"I withheld calling forth such a meeting because of the support Lord Bearyl had with his strategist, Caesar Silverberg," Gunther said. "However, given that Lord Caesar himself has also abandoned our cause it is now more clear than ever that Lord Bearyl is unfit for his position."

"You bastard!" Bearyl blindsided Gunther with a punch to the head, sending him to his knees in the dirt. "The only reason ANY of you are here is because of me! This is MY Army and you will follow MY orders!"

"Are you all right?" Allise asked Gunther, gingerly touching the side of his head.

Gunther forced a smile at her. "I'm sure I'll be better if I can rest my head on your—"

"What was that?" Allise asked, pulling on his ear.

"Ow, ow, stop it!" he pulled himself free and stood up. "S-So I'm proposing a vote to remove Bearyl Lutis from power! All opposed?"

Daunte looked around. Not one person raised their hand. Not even Varnaz.

"All in favor?"

Everyone then raised their hands. Including Varnaz.

"The motion is carried," Allise said. She turned to address Bearyl. "Bearyl Lutis, you are hereby stripped of your rank."

Bearyl looked at a complete loss for words. Daunte almost felt sorry for him, seeing the other man experience everything come crashing down around him.

But Bearyl recovered and rage filled his rage. "You…All of you…damn you _all_!" he shouted so loud that the sound rattled in Daunte's ears. "This is the thanks I get for everything I've done for you?! Allise—if it weren't for me you would've been stuck with Sheikh Hale! Or did you forget the fact that you were forced into a marriage with the man who murdered your parents?!"

Allise twitched very slightly. "I've never forgotten."

"And Gunther—" Bearyl rounded upon him. "You—You stole _ballots_ for your damned mistress in Mlkwt Alsmwat! _And_ you were caught in a compromising position with _six women_ in the inn at Uaminifu! You were not only sentenced to be burned alive, but also to be burned alive while on the rack! And who saved you from that fate, huh?! It was _me_!"

Daunte gaped at Gunther over these revelations. _Is…Is_ _ **this**_ _why he did not go into Uaminifu?!_

"Yes, you did," Gunther said sincerely. "And I've spent the last three years paying that debt back to you. But you have never seen any value in my work. Everything I have done you have treated me with ridicule, and you use my past against me when I complain. You've _threatened_ me with it, even. But I still continued to serve you. But I cannot serve you any longer."

"And…" Bearyl turned his attention then to Varnaz. Varnaz at least looked very upset by this turn of events. "And Varnaz. Even _you_ will turn on me now? After I saved your life? After that bastard Ramiro Lažov murdered your whole family on trumped up adultery charges just so he could marry his mistress?! You owe me _everything_! You pledged your life to me! And you turn on me now—for what?! For _him_?!" he jabbed a finger at Daunte. "You would throw away our friendship over that punk?!"

"Bearyl, I haven't thrown anything away," Varnaz responded. His voice had become numb. "I joined the Liberation Army to avenge my family, and I have given you nothing but my loyalty and support. But…" talking seemed to be physically painful for him, but he forced himself to continue. "But you have proven to me that you don't value anyone's life but your own. Men and women of all ages have died for this Army—hell, _I've_ almost died for this Army more than once! But you've treated us like we're all expendable pawns! Whether it be a squire to your own best friend! You _left me to die_!" Now he was shouting at Bearyl. "You sent my soldiers and I on a mission with false promises of backup, and then you abandoned us! I lost almost all the soldiers under my command for that! And not once— _not once_ have you apologized to me or apologized to the men and women who risked and _lost_ their lives on that ridiculous mission! You treated our return as though we somehow inconvenienced you, and _still_ I continued to serve you! But no—I'm not doing this anymore! I've had enough, and this has to stop! I know you're a good man Bearyl, but you are _not_ a good leader!"

Bearyl surveyed his best friend with a dark expression. He slowly folded his arms over his chest. "I get it now."

Something flickered across Varnaz's face. "What?"

"You've never truly had any loyalty to me, have you?"

"Are you kidding me?!" Daunte found himself saying. He couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"No, from day one—since I bailed you out of your execution, all you've wanted was power!" Bearyl shouted. He gestured at Varnaz angrily. "You don't fool me with this routine, Varnaz! Now I realize that you never had any loyalty to me! You've been lying in wait this whole time to steal power from me! You lied and manipulated me into believing I was your friend, when in reality you wanted to be leader!"

Daunte couldn't believe the gall Bearyl had. Varnaz had defended every single one of his bad decisions, and had treated Daunte and his friends like garbage because Bearyl didn't like him. There was probably _nobody_ more loyal to Bearyl in the entire Army than Varnaz!

 _He doesn't honestly believe the garbage coming out of his own mouth, does he? He's just trying to turn this around on Varnaz and make him look guiltier!_

"But I can't say that I'm surprised," Bearyl continued. "You were some washed-up soldier who couldn't even rise above the rank of Sergeant! You—"

" _Enough_!" Varnaz hollered. He grabbed Bearyl by his collar and yanked him so close that their noses were almost touching. "I've lost everything—I have nothing left but this Army! After everything I've done for you, I will not stand here and let you talk to me that!" he wrung him so violently that Bearyl's head bobbed around on his neck. "But you've proven to me that not only are we right to remove you from your position, but that you have never been my friend! I was an idiot for _ever_ pledging my life to you!" he shoved Bearyl backwards into the dirt. "I'm leaving. If you want to march upon Mlkwt Alsmwat, that's your choice. But I've paid my debt to you, and for now I just never want to see you again." He stormed out of the tent, and the group jumped to get out of his way.

"Traitor!" Bearyl shrieked, jumping to his feet. "All of you, traitors! Fine, have it your way! If you want to leave, then get out of my camp! Get out of MY ARMY!"

Daunte didn't say anything. The anger seemed to leak out of him. He honestly didn't feel anything towards Bearyl Lutis in that moment.

"Big Brother," Arin said, tugging on his hand. Daunte spared just a slight shake of his head towards Bearyl and then turned to follow the others out of the main tent.

* * *

Daunte wasn't surprised to see his allies ready to go. He _was_ , however, surprised to see tents being taken down all around him, and people gathering their things. They weren't the only ones leaving. It looked like almost the entire Liberation Army itself was leaving.

"Well, this is our exodus," Gunther said grimly. "Allise went off to find Varnaz before. They'll catch up to us, but where do we go from here?"

Daunte hesitated for a moment before turning to Gunther. "The west."

"Hmm," Gunther said, thinking about it. "I take it you have a place in mind that can house us all?"

"I hope so," Daunte said, nodding. "With any luck it's still standing."

"Well, it's better than what we have now." he turned as Ichirou ran up to them. "So, what's the count?"

"O-Only eleven soldiers aren't coming with us," Ichirou panted. "They refuse to budge in their loyalty to L—Bearyl. And Clara almost said she wouldn't come—"

"Oh, we're _not_ leaving her behind!" Gunther demanded.

"I understand. She at first said she _couldn't_ come because of the injured, b-but thanks to Daunte's spell almost everyone is okay to travel. She's confident she can use her healing Runes on people while we're on the road."

"Good," Daunte said. "It's looks like we're going to have to travel on foot from here. The last time I was at this place was bef—" he shook his head. "Never mind. It just means that we can't use Viki to teleport us there."

"And the only horses we have are the ones we brought from Uaminifu," Roen added.

"But let's not stall any longer," Daunte said. "Is everyone ready to go?"

"Yes," Oboro said, materializing beside him with a curious smile. "Lead the way, my Lord."

"Oboro, _please_ —" Daunte said.

"Hey, we're just following your lead," Gunther said, grinning toothily.

Daunte sighed heavily, but took Arin by the hand. "Let me know if you start getting exhausted, okay?"

Arin nodded. "I will."

And so Daunte left the Liberation Army camp with his new entourage. By the time the group had completely departed, and disappeared onto the horizon, Bearyl Lutis was left with his one solitary tent and eleven loyal soldiers.


	29. Chapter Three: Part Eight

Part Eight

They had left to strike it out on their own. But despite leaving Bearyl Lutis to his fate, there was no denying the fact that the Liberation Army had no headquarters and no leader.

Daunte knew he wasn't in a position to do much about the latter, but he hoped he could help greatly with the former.

The remnants of the Liberation Army split up to avoid drawing attention, and Daunte was given several maps to pinpoint the location of where they were going. Admittedly Daunte didn't know the exact coordinates of the place, but he vaguely remembered seeing the location on maps previously, and he marked them accordingly. However, he felt uneasy as they began to make the trek west. He had no idea if the place was even still standing. It wouldn't have made sense for it to remain standing.

 _But we don't have many other options, do we?_

Horses were scarce, so most everyone traveled on foot. Daunte was surprised when one of the volunteers from Uaminifu offered him his own horse. Daunte declined because he didn't see why he should get special treatment when so many others were not on horseback. He _did_ ask the volunteer however if the man wouldn't mind giving Arin a ride if the boy got tired, and the man agreed. Arin however did not seem to tired, and walked with his head held high. It was very reassuring to Daunte.

As they left Bearyl Lutis behind, Daunte looked for Gunther. "I was thinking we should send out scouts to find Caesar and have them meet with us."

"Good idea," Gunther said. "Our strategist may rush out into battle with us but he has no combat training."

"I'll ask Oboro and Shou to see if they can find him."

Gunther grinned at him. "Good initiative, Daunte."

Daunte didn't really know what he meant by that, but he immediately sought the two detectives out for their assistance. Oboro was on the case and sent Shou out to find Caesar, much to the younger man's annoyance.

"I know nothing about this country. Where do I even start looking?"

"You'll figure it out," Oboro replied.

Shou scoffed. "What a pain." But he did what he was told and set out to find Caesar.

Two hours into travel, Allise caught up with the main group with Varnaz. Varnaz was very apologetic for running out on them, and Daunte assumed that the Lieutenant General would assume position as leader of the Liberation Army. So he was surprised when Varnaz announced, "Once we establish a new base of operations, we will have a formal vote to appoint our new leader."

"Sounds fair," Allise said.

Other than fighting some monsters on the plains and in forests, they ran into no difficulties. Two days later, Daunte saw the outline of a long stone wall on the horizon and his heart skipped a beat. _There it is._

"Let's approach with caution," Varnaz warned. "We do not know if this place is currently inhabited. Either by foe or ally."

"The intelligence we gathered from the Holy Army did not list this place as part of their formal operations," Gunther said. "But I agree we should approach with caution."

Their group, which comprised of about thirty people, was the first to arrive. Daunte didn't see any of the other groups and he was briefly concerned. But he quickly shook it off. _They'll make it. I know they will!_

They moved closer towards the wall. Six meters away from the wall Daunte spotted three people standing in front of a giant set of heavy-looking double doors. The doors however looked broken, and one was laying lopsided against the wall. Further down the wall Daunte saw that part of it had caved in, and slate gray stone littered the ground. Various parts of the wall were covered in overgrown vines, but Daunte's attention drew back to the trio when Felicity shouted, "Caesar!"

His head snapped towards the trio. Yes, Caesar was surprisingly standing in between the other two people, and he looked over his shoulder to give them all a lazy smile. "Ho! Long time no see!"

"I found him," Shou said blandly, standing to Caesar's right. "How much will I get paid for this?"

The third person however was completely unknown to Daunte. It was a woman who looked to be twenty-five or twenty-six years old with sandy blonde hair tied back in a bun. She was not wearing any sort of veil, which indicated to Daunte she was not a native Nagarean. She looked at the group over glasses slipping down her nose, her blue eyes narrow and intense. She was wearing a long green trench coat over a dull brown tunic and green pants, and Daunte saw what appeared to be a Bo strapped to her back.

"We're very glad to see you alive Caesar," Daunte said, hurrying over to the strategist. "Thank you for finding him, Shou." He nodded to the detective before turning to the woman. "And you—"

"I'm not here to make friends," the woman said sharply, her voice impatient. "I'm here to explore this ruin."

"Ruin?" Gunther wondered, looking at the wall.

"I'm not surprised that all of you had come here," Caesar said. He patted the unbroken door. "This after all was the very first Chapel of the Nagarean faith. Not to mention it was also—"

"This place has all the earmarking's of a Sindar ruin," the woman interrupted. She glared at her surroundings. "The Nagarists took what didn't belong to them and converted it for their own selfish purposes, tarnishing a lost piece of a grand civilization!"

"…Right," Caesar said at length. "As I was saying, this place was also the original headquarters of the first Liberation Army. When the Holy Army invaded three years ago, it was abandoned. I tried to have Lord Bearyl re-establish this place as our headquarters but he thought it was a jinx to use a place that had been invaded already. And speaking of Lord Bearyl…" Caesar craned his neck to look around at the group before him. "I don't see him anywhere. Will he be joining us shortly?"

"No," Varnaz said, stepping forward. "Lord Bearyl was deposed, and we subsequently left him when he refused to accept our decisions."

Caesar looked incredibly surprised by this before smiling once more. "I'm sorry that it came to that, but I'm pleased we're finally stepping into the right direction."

"We weren't going to win if we stayed on the path we were on. Bearyl did not agree with our decision and threw us out, so here we are."

"Here you are," Caesar echoed. He looked at the assembly before him and nodded before looking at Daunte. "You were the one who led everyone here?"

Daunte nodded. "I'm not surprised," Caesar said. "This was your home before, after all."

"Your home?!" Roen exclaimed, looking at Daunte.

"How did you know that?" Daunte asked Caesar, gripping Arin's hand in his own.

"I'll explain everything later," Caesar said, turning back around to face the doors. "Right now, we have a bit a situation."

"What situation?" Gunther asked.

"The place is infested with monsters," Shou said. "I'm not joking; it's a _nest_ of all kinds of nasty stuff. I think that this is why nobody tried to move in here after three years."

"I tried to get inside to look around and study," the unknown woman quipped. "But even with my own combat skills I was overwhelmed." She glared at Daunte. "If you're going inside, then you're taking me with you."

"Who are you again?" Daunte asked her.

The woman sighed, and shoved her glasses up the bridge of her nose. "My name is Reis. Now can we get going?"

"I'll join the welcoming party as well," Caesar announced. He looked to Daunte. "Will you be leading the way in?"

Daunte was surprised, and looked at the others. Indeed, even with Varnaz assuming something close to a leadership position they were all looking at Daunte to make the first move. He was admittedly overwhelmed being back in this place, and wanted to assist clearing it out to make a decent home for the Army. He turned back to look at Caesar and nodded. "Sure I will."

"Since I'm not a fighter, I will serve as a supporting party member," Caesar said. "Who else would you like to take with you?"

Daunte looked out over his party before coming to a decision. "Roen, Felicity, Allise, and Jantu."

"Excellent." Caesar looked up. "Is everyone all right with these arrangements?"

The assembly before him answered affirmatively, and Daunte's party members moved forward to join him. Daunte then turned to Varnaz. "If I remember correctly, there's a tall building in the center of the structure that serves as the main building. We're going to make our way towards that building first, and then branch out to the other buildings. Once we enter the main building, would you mind sending a second group in to specifically deal with the monsters on the grounds?"

Varnaz nodded. "Sounds good."

"How many buildings are there here?" Allise asked.

"Seven," Arin suddenly spoke up. "Six form a hexagon radius around the main building in the center."

Daunte was honestly surprised that Arin remembered so much about the layout of the place. "I'll be right back," he told him. "Wait here for me."

Arin nodded eagerly. "I will."

"If you require assistance, send up a signal and we'll march in after you," Varnaz promised.

"Stay safe," Gunther told Allise.

Allise huffed and shook her head. "With my Rune, I'll be plenty safe."

"Then let's not waste any more time," Felicity said.

Cairoh had not traveled with their group so Daunte was apprehensive about the supplies they had, but he knew it just meant they would have to be more careful. Once the seven of them were ready, they ventured into the compound. Shou hadn't been kidding when he said the place was a nest of monsters. They barely took three steps onto the ground when they were attacked by a large group of DoReMi elves. Varnaz and the others almost moved to assist them, but Daunte waved them off and his group took care of them easily.

It was overwhelming being back. Daunte felt nostalgia settle over his being as they followed the gray stone path towards the main building in the center of the compound. The building was porcelain white and was six stories tall, rounded off with a sky blue dome on top. Daunte swallowed thickly as they approached the main building. He remembered that this was his family main residence—he'd spent almost all his time in this building.

"From what I heard, this was the first Chapel of the Nagarist faith," Caesar mused aloud as they approach the black double doors. These doors were also broken on their hinges.

Reis scoffed. "This looks like a Sindarian palace that was converted into some religious compound. I swear, people have no respect for the past!"

Daunte was starting to get mildly annoyed by her self-righteous attitude, but he kept it to himself as they ventured inside. For despite her dour demeanor, Reis was proving to be a capable fighter. She swung her Bo with incredible skill in combat, and she performed near effortlessly. Since they kept getting bombarded with monster after monster, he was glad for the extra help. Inside, the main entrance hall was massive. The walls were pale blue, and Daunte saw two sets of doors on opposite sides of the hall. He saw a large stairwell directly across from the entrance leading up to the second floor. He looked up the stairwell and saw another set of stairs that led up to the third floor, but the rest of the floors were obstructed by the ceiling.

"No!"

Daunte jumped and turned around. Reis was rubbing her hands on the walls in disbelief. She dug her fingernails into the paint, and it flake off. "T-The walls were painted over! No, no, no! Sindarian structures have writings on their wall—and they painted over them!" she looked around frantically. "How…How am I supposed to know now if this is truly Sindar in origin?!"

"I like the color," Allise offered.

Reis cursed and knelt down to fiddle through her pack. "I'll scrape all this blasted paint off!"

"Do that later, right now we have company!" Jantu shouted, pointing as half a dozen gray wolves burst out from one of the rooms and charged towards them. Luckily they were able to take care of the foes easily, but it was still a reminder that they needed to be vigilant.

"Let's clear out this building first and foremost," Caesar said. "We'll leave the other buildings to Varnaz and the others."

Daunte nodded. "Let's go."

Slowly, they made their climb up six floors, looking in every room. Most of the rooms were dusty and empty, or they had broken furniture. Some of them did have random chests in them that they broke open that had healing items. One even had a unique scroll in it that showed combat stances.

"I'll take that," Jantu said, holding his hand out. Daunte gave it to him without protest.

On the fourth floor, however, Daunte could feel his stomach churning, and his footsteps became heavier as he ascended the steps. The group rounded the corner of the fourth floor, and saw a narrow hallway with three doors facing each other.

"Hey, Daunte," Roen said, grabbing him by the arm. "Are you all right?"

Daunte realized that his breathing had been audibly ragged and he coughed to clear his throat. "I-I'm fine, thank you," he said. He nodded towards the doors. "Let's check these rooms out."

The first room to their left was stripped bare except for two treasure chests. To Daunte's shock they found 20,000 bits in the first trunk. In the second trunk, he found another small box with the words 'Sound Set 05' stamped onto the surface.

"Liron will be thrilled when she sees this," Felicity said as Daunte shoved the box into his satchel.

"I like this room," Caesar announced suddenly. He walked around the perimeter of the room and stopped in front of the two sets of windows across from the door. Then he looked at Daunte. "Would anyone mind if I claimed this room for myself?"

"You're our Army strategist," Allise pointed out. "So by default you get first dibs anyway."

Daunte shrugged. "It's all yours."

"Good!" Caesar cheered. "Then let's keep moving."

Daunte crossed the hall to check the other rooms. He was deliberately avoiding the other two doors next to Caesar's room. Two of the room were empty, and one had a treasure chest with an escape scroll in it. This room also had three DoReMi Elves in it, and Daunte's ears were still ringing when they left this room.

"Now this room," Felicity said, gesturing to the middle door beside Caesar's room. Daunte felt his heart leap into his throat, and he tried to shake off the feeling of unease as he stepped forward. "A…Allow me."

"O-Okay," Felicity said, stepping aside. Daunte did several breathing exercises as he approached the door. This door…he remembered. This wasn't just some random room.

It had been his parent's room. And the room he'd shared with Arin was right next door.

Daunte's right hand touched the surface of the door, and the Rune of Restoration suddenly began to glow. "No!" Daunte cried out with dismay, and squeezed his eyes shut. He knew the Rune was restoring a lost memory of this place, and Daunte had a terrible feeling about _what_ memory it would invoke.

"My Lady!"

The frantic shout startled Daunte, and he opened his eyes. A soldier in a blue uniform raced past him and into the room. "My Lady, they're here!"

Daunte looked into the room, and his heart leapt into his throat. There she was—his mother. He was looking upon her as clearly as he had when he was a child, before his memories became murky. Daunte recognized her outfit as the outfit of a High Cleric—the pristine shapeless white robe, the white hood with large pointed horns—because Nagar Himself had horns on his head, so the Clerics wore horns on their hoods as a way of bringing themselves closer to Nagar—though she did not wear a veil over her face. The hood covered every strand of her black hair. He remembered—she had _been_ a High Cleric, right? Phoebe had made Nagarean history as the youngest person anointed to position in the Cabinet of High Clerics at the age of seventeen.

But in this memory—in this memory it was seventeen years _after_ she was anointed as a High Cleric, but she still wore the white robes of a Cleric. She was supposed to be a symbol of hope for people, and to show that the High Clerics in power were not _true_ High Clerics.

"My Lady, we're been betrayed!" the soldier went into a full kneel before Phoebe. Daunte then only noticed that Phoebe had a book open in her lap, and he saw the two children sitting on either side of her. Arin, and… _himself_. "The Holy Army is here!"

Daunte then realized he that he could hear screaming throughout the compound, and the sounds of fighting. Six-year-old Arin began to cry, and fourteen-year-old Daunte quickly looked to Phoebe, clearly looking for what to do.

Phoebe, however, remained calm and looked at the soldier as she slowly closed the book. "Betrayal…it would appear that way, wouldn't it? When half of the Army is currently marching to Kõrkus, and…" she quickly shook her head. "Where is my husband?"

"He's fighting at the gate, but he swore he would catch up to us!" the soldier rose to his feet and held out his hand to her. "Please, come with me! I will escort your sons and you to safety!"

"And leave the Liberation Army to its fate?" Phoebe asked. "What sort of leader would I be if I did not guide the men and women who serve under me?"

"Then your children. I—"

Phoebe forced a smile at him. "I hope you'll forgive me, but given the current circumstances I'm not going to trust anyone with my children other than my husband."

"R-Right!" the soldier quickly nodded. "Then I will try and get him for you! Please stay here! We'll keep you safe, I promise!" the soldier fled the room and closed the door behind him. Daunte was already in the room, however, so he witnessed what unfolded next.

"Mom, what do we do?!" the younger Daunte exclaimed. Phoebe calmly picked up the still crying Arin into her arms and held him comfortingly. "Who would do this to us?!"

"I'm afraid there's only one person who _could've_ done this to us, Daunte," Phoebe said softly. She slowly paced the room while holding Arin. "And it's the same person who convinced me _not_ to lead the Army marching upon Kõrkus."

Daunte watched as his younger self's face filled with abject horror and his mouth hung open. "You don't mean— _no_! It was _him_?!"

Phoebe stopped pacing to face Daunte. "I don't want to think it either, but everything—the campaign, my staying behind, everything—was after all _his_ idea. And right now _he's_ the ones leading my soldiers…into a trap." Her voice had become very upset, and it trailed off into a soft whisper.

"Oh no…" the younger Daunte wrung both hands through his hair in anguish. Daunte wanted to give his younger self a hug.

The door to the room suddenly burst open, and Phoebe quickly turned. "N—" but she froze and her eyes went wide. Daunte watched his younger self race over to stand in front his mother and younger brother protectively, and Daunte turned to see who had come in.

Then a hand suddenly grabbed his right wrist. _"Daunte."_

Daunte blinked. After a moment he realized he wasn't in the room any longer. He was still standing in the hallway, his hand on the door. Caesar moved in closer, having been the one who grabbed his wrist. "Daunte, are you all right?"

Daunte didn't know how long he'd been standing there reliving the memory, but he turned to look at the others. All of them except for Reis looked concerned. He swallowed thickly before he spoke. "T…They were betrayed."

"What?" Felicity asked softly.

"T-The former Liberation Army," Daunte stammered. "We were betrayed by someone loyal. H-He…" Daunte shook his head and didn't finish the sentence.

"So it's true," Caesar said, letting go of Daunte's wrist. "But I'm not surprised. In my most recent studies about wars, almost all of them involved betrayals by trusted companions. The Gate Rune War, the Dunan Unification War, even the Falenan Civil War—they all involved betrayal. It's what tends to win some wars."

"S-So your family served in the original Liberation Army?" Roen asked.

Daunte shrugged stiffly. He wondered if he should tell them about his mother, but he also wondered if he should keep it secret. He thought about it for a few moments before speaking. "My mother…her name was Phoebe Amirmoez."

"EH?!" almost everyone shouted, taking a few steps back.

" _The_ Phoebe Amirmoez?!" Felicity exclaimed, pressing a hand to her throat. "The _founder_ of the Liberation Army?!"

"She was also a former High Cleric, but she was defrocked!" Roen said.

"All of this is true," Caesar said, folding his arms over his chest. "Lady Phoebe was also the only High Cleric who survived the massacre by former Nether Gate assassins when they took over the government. Of course by surviving, they instead blamed _her_ for all the murders. She was a brilliant politician—her notoriety somehow reached Harmonia, and they even tried to send headhunters here to recruit her!"

"And she was your mother?" Allise asked Daunte. He could almost hear the reverence in her voice, but Daunte instead turned to Caesar. "How do you know so much? And did you always know about my connection to her?"

Caesar shrugged. "What kind of strategist would I be if I wasn't well-informed? Besides I've seen photographs of Lady Phoebe, and while _you_ don't look like her Daunte, Arin does look a lot like her. And it also explained why Arin wasn't pardoned for Original Sin by default, despite the fact that he was technically too young to have been sentenced to the Dark Chasm."

Daunte was still a bit overwhelmed by everything, especially seeing his mother clearly for the first time since before…no, he didn't want to think about it.

"This Rune is incredible," Reis said suddenly, grabbing Daunte's hand. "This is a True Rune, right? Where did you find it?"

"All in good time," Caesar interrupted. He looked at Daunte. "Do you feel comfortable entering these rooms?"

Daunte nodded. "Yes." He hesitated no further and entered the room. For a brief moment he panicked as he inhaled the stale air in the room. He almost smelled… _blood_ in the air.

But the room was thankfully empty. There was no blood on the walls or on the floor; and no bodies. It was just dusty and empty. Daunte approached the window seat in front of the rows of windows across from the doors. It was surprisingly untouched, although the white cushions looked faded. He slowly sank down onto the window seat, and the cushions groaned audibly from having been untouched for so long. He could see the courtyard from the windows, and he saw the large groups of monsters roaming. He also saw various Liberation Army groups quickly dispatch of the monsters. He even saw Gunther leading a group against some wasps.

"I used to sit here for hours, watching people train and talk outside," he found himself saying. "I remember we…" he almost touched the window pane, but withdrew his hand. The last thing he needed was to invoke another memory. He quickly stood up. "Let's go."

"Here's another door," Roen said pointedly, gesturing to a door on the left side of the room. He was obviously trying to distract Daunte. "This is probably the last room on this floor."

"T-That was Arin and mine's room," Daunte said. He hurried to the door but used his left hand to open it. There was a bed near the door that had become a pile of dusty splinters, but the room was otherwise empty.

"I can't believe you lived here before being sent to the Dark Chasm," Felicity said, looking around the room.

"Are you all right?" Roen asked him.

Daunte nodded and forced a smile. "We've cleared this floor. Let's continue onwards."

They left the room and climbed up the set of stairs at the end of the hallway. On this floor there was only one door to the left, and to the right there was no wall, but paned-glass windows that stretched from ceiling to floor. Daunte could see that there was a balcony beyond the glass, and he remembered how it wrapped around the entire building.

"Well, this is interesting," Caesar said, opening the door into the room. It was a giant room, the width easily five meters and the length six meters, with two statues of Nagar on opposite sides of the room. There was no wall opposite the door, instead there was painted glass leading onto the other side of the balcony.

"Hmm," Allise said, observing her surroundings. "If I recall, this may have been where the first Clerics converged to plan missionary work."

Reis scoffed as she looked around the room. "The structure of this room doesn't fit Sindarian architecture! It's no wonder they had no interest in this place." She shrugged. "After all, the tablet didn't give coordinates to this place."

Daunte quickly turned to look at her. "…What did you say?"

"Hmm?" Reis looked at him. "The tablet. The Sindarian Tablet. It gave the coordinates for the location of a True Rune in Nagarea, but it—"

"YOU!" Felicity shouted, jabbing a finger at Reis. "It was you!"

"What?" Reis asked her.

"The Cabinet of High Clerics found out about the existence of Daunte's True Rune because of someone's translation," Roen said hotly, glaring at her. "You were who translated it for them weren't you?! _Weren't you_?!"

"Why are you getting upset with me?" Reis demanded. "We're talking about a job I did eight years ago! Yes, they hired me to translate the Tablet! All I had were my father's notes, but I did the job I was paid to do!"

"Do you have _any_ idea what you've done?!" Daunte shouted, startling Reis slightly. "How many children have died because of what was found on that tablet?! How could you just accept the job of a tyrannical government?!"

"Look, I don't know what you're talking about," Reis snapped back. "I was just hired to translate an archeological find! There is no crime in that!"

"Ms. Reis, you are not responsible for what happened to Daunte and his friends," Caesar said calmly. "But I _do_ hope you understand that as a result of your findings, the location of the True Rune was turned into a labor camp for children to find the True Rune. Which is _still_ in operation as we speak, despite the fact that Daunte found the True Rune inside the location."

Reis _did_ look stunned by this news, but she shook her head and fixed her glasses. "I had nothing to do with that, so don't blame me for it."

Daunte was about to snap at her again when she continued. "However, I _do_ recognize that my pursuit of knowledge about the Sindar race has caused you all some difficulties. For that, I apologize. If you would have me, I would like to join your cause to make what little amends I must make."

"You seem more interested in this place than our cause," Jantu pointed out.

Reis shrugged unapologetically. "There's that, too." But she saw the look Daunte was giving her and quickly continued. "But since I'm here anyway, and since I inadvertently made your lives harder, I will lend you my strength. If you will have me."

Caesar approached Daunte and spoke to him softly. "I know you're upset, but from what I understand her father is one of the preeminent Sindar experts. The Sindar race held a lot of secrets, and her findings may prove useful to us."

He was advising Daunte to accept Reis as an ally, and though Daunte didn't trust her (especially since she'd worked for the High Clerics previously), he wasn't about to ignore Caesar's advice. He nodded to Reis and held out his hand. "Welcome abroad." He saw by the looks on Roen and Felicity's face that they weren't happy about this decision, but they voiced no protests.

Reis smiled thinly at Daunte and accepted his handshake. "Thank you."

"All right, we have one more floor to go," Allise announced. She grinned at the group. "With any luck, we won't run into anything nasty up there."

Daunte shook his head as they left the room. "The sixth floor is empty."

"How do you know?" Roen asked.

"Because we would've known by now if something was up there."

They reached the sixth floor, and once again Daunte was overwhelmed. It had been his favorite room in the entire building; the rotunda with the four pipes facing a circle. And despite the fact that the pipes were covered, the room was as empty as he'd thought.

"By Nagar, I've heard of this room!" Allise exclaimed. She ran over to the pipes where she stood in between them. "I've read about this! Because of how large the compound was, the High Clerics would stand here and give the Morning Prayer from this room! These pipes run through every building, and are funneled into some of the posts outside, so their message could be heard clear everywhere!"

"Now _this_ is a Sindarian invention," Reis said with awe. She pulled out a pad and began quickly writing notes on it.

"Well then, let's see how well this works," Caesar said. He looked to Daunte. "Why don't we say hello to our allies fighting outside?"

Daunte himself had never spoken into the pipes before, but he remembered watching Phoebe speaking into them. He nodded. "I'll do it."

They carefully removed the lids on the pipes, and Daunte moved to stand in the center. He remembered how sensitive the pipes were, and he knew he did not have to shout into them. "H-Hello, Liberation Army."

The sounds vibrated all the way down the pipes, echoing slightly. He looked at Caesar, who nodded. "The main building is secure," he continued. "If you can hear this message, please meet in the front courtyard."

A loud, shrilling roar startled everyone. The group raced over to various windows lining the room, looking outside. "I don't see anything," Felicity said.

"Neither do I," Jantu said grimly. "But something must be coming."

"Then let's go!" Daunte announced.

The group raced down the six stories and back towards the entrance. They ran into no further monsters inside the building, indicating to them that they had taken care of the next in there.

Just outside, Daunte saw that the Varnaz, Gunther, and a third group were waiting for them. To his relief, nobody looked seriously injured. "Where did that sound come from?" Caesar asked. "Did anyone see what caused it?!"

"It came from the cliff," Gunther said, pointing. "There's a walkway and some stairs leading down the cliffside, and it looked like it led into a cave. Then I saw giant tentacles, and…" he shuddered slightly. "I figured it would be best to come back and report it before jumping down there."

"My announcement must have woken it up," Daunte said grimly.

"Well if it's a sea monster, then the compound should be safe," Caesar said. "It's probably _not_ going to come to land."

"I wouldn't count on that," Shou perked up. "My mom told me about this time when a giant snake jumped out of Ceras Lake and attacked Prince Freyjadour on a bridge—"

"Shou, you're not helping," Oboro teased.

"I'll go down and deal with it," Daunte said. "It wasn't there when I lived here, and if we ignore it then it really _might_ come up here."

"Do you want change your party before going down there?" Caesar asked.

"Does anyone _not_ want to go down there?" Daunte asked. Thankfully, nobody answered in the negative. "Then let's go!"

"If you get into trouble, we're up here to provide reinforcements," Varnaz told him. "Don't hesitate to shout for help, we _will_ come for you."

Daunte nodded. "Thank you. Okay, let's get this over with quickly."

Gunther led them to where the walkway was. There was a lift next to the walkway, but Daunte saw how rusted the controls were and didn't want to risk getting on it. The staircase leading down looked rotted by getting repeatedly pummeled by the ocean surf, so the group made their way down in single file. However, other than the left rail being dangerously loose, the steps held out as they climbed down to the landing below. It almost looked like a dock.

"Oh, there it is," Caesar said nonchalantly, pointing. Daunte saw the blue tentacles first, and when he reached the landing he felt Jantu grab the back of his shirt and yank him back. "LOOK OUT!"

A long stream of black ink shot out from the cave and narrowly miss Daunte, hitting the water instead. "Okay, it's hostile," Daunte breathed. "Let's go!"

They raced into the tunnel. After almost getting hit with black ink, Daunte wasn't surprised to see a blue octopus waiting for them. What he _was_ surprised about what that the octopus was as big at the cave itself, and its tentacles were stretched out around it's body, reaching for them. "Best Friends!" Daunte shouted, getting into formation with Roen and Felicity. To his horror, with his attack each of the eight tentacles were individually struck, in addition to the main body.

It was as though they had _nine_ opponents to fight!

"Everyone, get behind me!" Allise shouted, spreading her arms. " _Open Gate_!"

She casted the spell from her Pale Gate Rune, and the beast shrieked. All eight of its tentacles began bleeding, but all of them began attacking. Some with simple strikes with others tried to grab for them. "Keep moving!" Jantu shouted. He swung his Tabarzin at one of the tentacles, slicing a chunk of it off. "Don't let it grab you!"

"Let me try something," Felicity said, pulling out her knives. "Maybe my Kite Rune can strike them all!" she triggered the Rune and threw her knives. Her attack did strike most of the tentacles, though it left her scrambling to get her weapons back.

"My turn," Daunte said, raising his right hand. " _Berate_!"

The Rune of Restoration attack spell pummeled the whole body of the octopus. With this attack, three battered and bleeding tentacles crashed to the ground unmoving, allowing Felicity to get some of her knives back.

"I've still got a few tricks up my sleeve," Allise said. " _Royal Passage_!"

This was undoubtedly level 2 of her Pale Gate Rune, and from the power of the rune Daunte was stunned to see a giant of a beast, as big as the octopus, with two lightning horns sticking from its back. Lightning burst from the horns and rained down upon the main body of the octopus. But there was so much power from the blast that lightning shockwaves were flying everywhere.

"Augh!" Reis shrieked, jumping out of the way. "If we're hit by that we'll be electrocuted!"

Despite everything they threw at the beast, it was still a very long battle. They threw every spell and attack at it that they had, and Daunt made liberal use of the _Howl_ spell so it wouldn't be wasted. Finally, after a very long battle, the octopus collapsed into the water, dead.

"Well, that was fun," Caesar said, emerging from the entrance. He looked up and down at their surroundings as best as they could, with the octopus's carcass blocking it. "This…looks a bit like an underground dock, doesn't it? And while you all were fighting, I realized that the water from the ocean was flowing _into_ the cavern, not out of it." he looked at Daunte. "It looks like we have an underground river. We'll have to find out where it goes."

Daunte nodded in agreement. "Let's go back to Varnaz and tell him we killed the monster. After we secure the upper compound, we can worry about cleaning this out."

"Well, we could use it for _food_ in any case," Allise said, folding her arms over her chest. "That should help clear it out."

* * *

Within a week, the compound was cleared of monsters and the rest of the Liberation Army had joined them. They followed Allise's advice and use the octopus's body to feed the Army. Daunte had never eaten octopus before, and while he'd eaten worse the way Tidur had prepared it was…less than appetizing.

"I'm sorry," Tidur had said. "I've never cooked octopus before."

Daunte made a mental note to find a professional chef for the Army. Not that he disliked Tidur's cooking, but she was already working hard enough as it was arranging room and board for everyone. He didn't want to overwork her.

Once everyone was out of danger, and once everyone was settled, a very important topic came up; electing a new leader of the Liberation Army.

"We'll need to come to a consensus," Varnaz announced. "We need someone we can all definitively vote for."

Daunte had no idea why _he_ was there with Gunther, Allise, Farzin, Eamon and Caesar in the fifth floor of the main building. Caesar, however, gave his answer quickly.

"If I might speak," he said, standing up. "I want to nominate someone."

"Absolutely, Lord Caesar," Varnaz said. "Who do you have in mind?"

Caesar turned and turned to Daunte. "I want Daunte to be the leader."

Daunte gaped at him in shock, and pointed to his own chest. "M… _Me_?"

"You were chosen by a True Rune, so you're destined for something great," Caesar. "You also found this place for us. In addition, you have demonstrated that you have impeccable leadership capabilities and you have consistently put the good of the Army before yourself. You have sacrificed much for the sake of this Army, and you have proven time and time again that we can trust you. You're an inspiration to our soldiers, and if anyone can inspire them to victory, it's you." He paused before adding, "And you're the son of the original Liberation Army leader. It's fitting."

Daunte clicked his mouth shut. He honestly didn't know what to say. He looked sideways at the others, people with more political and military experience than him. Not one of them, not even _Varnaz_ , looked upon him with disapproval.

"Any objection?" Caesar asked cheerfully. None were voiced.

"We will now have a formal vote," Varnaz announced. "Daunte, if you'll excuse us we will summon you when we've made a decision.

* * *

Daunte sat on the grassy hilltop several feet from the steep cliff side overlooking the ocean. It was dusk; the sun was starting to set on the horizon.

But his stomach was churning and he felt apprehensive.

 _They don't really want me to be the leader of the Liberation Army, do they? Me? I'm seventeen years old! I'm not a general! I'm barely a soldier! I have no rank! And yet they want ME to lead?_

"Daunte?"

Daunte looked over his shoulder as Arin took a seat beside him. "I heard the news. So they want to make you leader?"

Daunte nodded. "I don't know why though. There are men and women here far more qualified for the job than I am."

"It's because everyone trusts you," Arin said. "You've done so much for the people in this Army and you continued to work hard even when Bearyl Lutis didn't give you any credit." He paused before adding, "Plus, you have a True Rune. That makes you even more special than other people."

Daunte looked at the Rune of Restoration on his right hand. Arin continued. "And it fits. I mean, Mom was a leader wasn't she?"

Daunte's head snapped up and he looked at Arin in shock. "Y…You remember her?"

"A little bit," Arin said. "I-I don't really remember her face. Or Papa's face. But I remember that everybody looked up to Mom, and she always seemed to know what she was doing. And I remember Papa. He…" he frowned deeply, and pulled out the wooden figurine Daunte had given him. "Papa always seemed to be angry. Did he ever smile, Daunte?"

Daunte shook his head. "I don't remember. But even I don't remember his face."

"He probably smiled a lot at Mom," Arin said, smiling slightly. "Everybody smiled at Mom!" then his smile disappeared and he dipped his head low. "I miss them, Brother."

Daunte reached out and patted his knee. "I do, too."

"S-So I'm not surprised they want you to be leader," Arin said, quickly changing the subject. "After all it's almost like fate, right?"

Daunte flinched slightly, and looked back down at his hand. After a moment he said, "The Tenkai Star…"

"What?" Arin asked.

"The woman—Leknaat," Daunte recalled. "She appeared to me and told me I was the Tenkai Star. I was chosen as the leader of the 108 Stars of Destiny."

"That's so cool, Big Brother!" Arin gushed. "So you're not just a natural leader! You're _destined_ to be a natural leader! And you're a Star, too?!" he looked up towards the sky. "I wonder if I'm a Star?"

Daunte laughed. "I'm sure you are."

"But I'll stand by you no matter what you choose," Arin finished. "Whether you want to be leader or not, I'll stay by your side."

Daunte laughed, and pulled him in for a half-hug. "Thanks."

"Oi!"

The brothers looked up as Gunther approached them, waving his hand. The older man was grinning. "The vote is finished, guys."

"And?" Daunte asked.

"It was unanimous, of course. We want you to be our leader, Daunte."

Daunte wasn't really surprised, but he felt a squirm of uncertainty in his being. This was short-lived however, as Arin jumped to his feet and cheered. "YAY! Daunte is the leader!"

"Is this okay with you?" Gunther asked Daunte, helping him to his feet. "I mean; you don't have to accept the position if you don't want to. You're not the only candidate, but you _are_ the only candidate everybody agreed on. So…what do you say? Will you lead us, Daunte?"

Daunte stared at him. This was his moment to accept or decline. While he doubted his capabilities to lead an entire Army without having a shred of military experience, he was in awe of the way people looked at him. He didn't quite understand why he inspired so many, when he felt that he wasn't doing much at all.

 _But they trust me. And I_ _ **do**_ _want to make things better for this country so that we no longer suffer. I guess the only way I will make things better is if I do it myself._

Daunte nodded. "If you all will have me; I would be honored to be leader."

Gunther took a step back, and promptly unsheathed his sword. Arin yelped in shock and Daunte jumped slightly when Gunther stabbed the ground in front of him and knelt down before him. "My Lord. As of this moment I swear my sword and my life to you. You have my trust and my strength, and I will stand by you to the very end."

Daunte was stunned by this pledge of loyalty and he swallowed thickly before answering. "T-Thank you, Gunther."

Gunther smiled at him and sheathed his sword. "Follow me please, Lord Daunte."

Daunte still wasn't used to the title and he signaled for Arin to walk beside him as he followed Gunther towards the main building. "S…Should I call you lord as well?" Arin asked him.

Daunte shook his head. "It's not necessary. I'm not a lord."

"You are our leader now, and we will address you with the respect you deserve," Gunther said over his shoulder.

Daunte's eyes widened when he saw the large assembly of people crammed into the main hall of the main building. He saw Caesar, Varnaz, Allise, Farzin, and Eamon standing on the first landing of the stairwell. "I've brought him," Gunther announced, presenting Daunte.

"Have you decided?" Caesar asked Daunte.

Daunte nodded. "Thank you for your nomination. I will accept it."

The entire assembly exploded in cheers, startling Daunte and Arin. Caesar gestured for Daunte to come forward. Arin almost followed, but Gunther gestured to the boy to stay still. As Daunte ascended the steps, the group on the landing headed down the stairs, leaving Caesar standing there alone. All of them were smiling at Daunte. When Daunte reached Caesar's side, the strategist swept into a full bow.

"My Lord," he greeted. "I hereby pledge myself to your name. Henceforth, I am your servant."

"Thank you," Daunte said, but movement to his right caught his attention. The entire assembly fell into a full kneel before the staircase, bowing their heads. Gunther joined them, and Arin did also after a moment. The only one left standing was Varnaz. Daunte was stunned to see the man—the man who had looked upon him with suspicion and derision for so long—now looked upon him with respect and pride.

"Lord Daunte," Varnaz announced, before mimicking the crowd and kneeling before him. "We hereby pledge ourselves to you."

Daunte was so moved by the display that he felt tears sting his eyes. He cleared his throat to steady his voice before speaking. "Thank you all. I hereby pledge myself then to all of you. I will fight with all of my strength to not fail you, and to ensure that we see victory at the end of this war." Unable to help himself, he pumped a fist to the air. "For Nagarea!"

"FOR NAGAREA!" the crowd chanted, followed by whoops and cheers.

" _Party time_!" Gunther suddenly shouted, earning him more cheers.

"Wait one moment!" Caesar suddenly shouted, raising his hands for silence. He received shouts of protest, but he shook his head at them. "Before we celebrate our new headquarters, and the election of a new leader, we need to get everything in order." He turned to Daunte. "My Lord, please give your first orders."

Daunte gaped at him for a moment, stunned. He quickly realized that everyone was looking at him expectantly and he quickly shook his head. _Get it together! You're the leader now, so you must lead!_

"Ah…" he took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Do you have any suggestions, Caesar?"

Caesar positively smiled at him. "Of course. I think it's in our best interests to find the survivors of Agameru."

Daunte was delighted by the suggestion and nodded eagerly. "Then we'll send out scouts to find the whereabouts of where Lord Lorik took his people. Oboro?"

"I'll be right on it," Oboro said, stepping forward.

"Is there anything else, my Lord?" Caesar asked.

Daunte had recovered from suddenly being put on the spot and turned to face the assembly. "I know that we've suffered many trials, but I would like to plan our next military campaign."

"Excellent," Caesar said. "What did you have in mind?"

Daunte found Roen and Felicity in the crowd, and then his eyes went to Arin. Finally, he said, "We're going to liberate the Dark Chasm."

* * *

Seven dead bodies of Liberation Army soldiers were laid out before them. From her horse alongside the entire Cabinet of High Clerics, the Matron looked at them impassively.

"Your Worships." A Holy Army lieutenant knelt down before them. "We confirmed Bearyl Lutis was here, but he escaped. Our scout saw him flee with four other soldiers."

"Execute the scout," Kayanu ordered. The soldier flinched. "He let the rebels get away and did not stop them."

"Your Worship," the lieutenant sputtered. "I spoke vaguely. The scout saw them at a distance. H-He couldn't have—"

"He saw them leave and did not stop them," Kayanu snapped back. "He let them get away, so he will be punished with death."

"But—"

"Are you questioning the order of a _High Cleric_?!" Yuuto snapped at him.

"No, of course not!" the lieutenant scrambled to his feet. "Apprehend the scout! I will see to his execution myself!"

"Wise choice," Kayanu said as the soldier retreated. The Matron saw some of the Holy Army soldiers give them dirty looks, but pretended not to notice.

"So Bearyl Lutis was only protected by eleven soldiers?" Takefute mused aloud. "It appears he was abandoned by the Liberation Army."

"Unsurprisingly," Hayato quipped. "He was completely incompetent at leading anything."

"But the Liberation Army is still united," the Matron said. "And they have fallen under the command of that boy with the True Rune."

"Only fools would follow a _child_ ," Takefute huffed. He looked to the Matron. "What will you do now, my Lady?"

Two meters away, they heard the scout scream for mercy before the lieutenant cut him down. The Matron didn't even flinch. "I will wait. Since that boy has now assumed power, I know exactly where they're going to go next."

* * *

End of Chapter Three


	30. Chapter Four: Part One

This is the fourth time rewriting this chapter. Sorry for the delay.

* * *

Chapter Four: Part One

* * *

 _Investigations_

 _Secret #1_

 **Name:** Arin

 **Age:** 9

 **From:** Mlkwt Alsmwat, Nagarea

 **Position:** Liberation Army soldier (?)

 _Secret #2_

You requested me to investigate your little brother? How very strange. I can't imagine I would be able to shed any light on Arin that you don't already know. Well, he absolutely adores you. He's rather wise beyond his years, and seems to have more self-awareness than most adults do. But I'm sure you already know all this.

 _Secret #3_

I listed his birthplace as Mlkwt Alsmwat, but that's technically not correct. It seems your mother gave birth to him on the road while your family was fleeing Mlkwt Alsmwat. He was born premature too, and everyone was concerned that he wouldn't make it. But your parents refused to give up on him and he eventually got better. This is accurate, correct?

 _Secret #4_

Because of his imprisonment he's never learned how to read. Oh, but that hasn't stopped him from trying. Just the other day I found him trying to read a large dictionary! Thankfully our new headquarters has a library, but make sure he doesn't push himself too hard.

He also likes ice cream. Sorry if this report sounds lackluster (especially since you spent money on it), but I honestly don't know what else I can tell you about your little brother that you don't already know.

* * *

 _Investigations_

 _Secret #1_

 **Name:** Felicity

 **Age:** 17

 **From:** Farna, Nagarea

 **Position:** Liberation Army soldier, former Dark Chasm prisoner

 _Secret #2_

Felicity is one of you best friends with whom you met during your time in the Dark Chasm. In that wretched place she stood out from other children because of her optimism in the fact of the horrendous abuse you all suffered. This tended to get her into trouble a lot, because the guards didn't take kindly to seeing smiles and laughter, which Felicity frequently displayed. But it didn't stop her from behaving this way, somewhat in defiance of them.

 _Secret #3_

This is no secret, but Felicity survived the Plague of Farna. Twelve years ago the town was struck by a plague that had been created by the Theocracy to exterminate the elves of Nagarea, but the plague accidentally spread to Farna. Eight thousand people died of the Plague, including Felicity's mother. She witnessed many horrors in that city, and this may have been why she wasn't so fazed by her experience in the Dark Chasm. I would strongly recommend talking with her about her experience sometime. It's not an easy subject for her, but she seems more relaxed when she gets it off her chest.

 _Secret #4_

This may surprise you, but Felicity has become disillusioned with the Nagarean faith. Her father was convicted under Original Sin for adultery; he had an affair with the wife of a cleric. This is part of the reason he made many business trips to Mlkwt Alsmwat. As per the laws of Original Sin, both guilty parties should be punished. However, only Felicity's family was punished and the cheating wife was not. Felicity has expressed a lot of anger over this, because she feels it isn't fair that her family was singled out for punishment. It's probably because of this why she was so enthusiastic about joining the Liberation Army.

* * *

 _One week later…_

Daunte rolled onto his back and he came fully awake. The sunlight filtering in from the windows filled the room, and he blinked against them as he sat up. He had been given his parent's old bedroom, and as they had become fully settled in their new headquarters they were able to procure furniture. They provided him a king-sized bed—though he would've been happy with a twin-sized one—and his room was filled with furniture. In the center of the room was a circular table, and he relaxed at who he saw there.

"Good morning, Big Brother," Arin greeted him around the food in his mouth. "Ms. Tidur sent breakfast up for us!"

Arin had been given the adjoining room, which ironically had been Daunte and Arin's shared room when they had originally lived there. Every morning Arin would get up and eat breakfast with him. It was strange doing something so… _normal_ with his little brother after everything they'd gone through.

"Good morning," Daunte said, rubbing at his eyes as he got out of bed. He looked at the food placed out for him on the table and paused. There was…quite a bit of it. Including two bowls of white rice. "Tidur is certainly generous to me," he said as he took a seat at the table.

"Well, today is a big day," Arin said, positively smiling at Daunte. "Today, you lead the Liberation Army to the Dark Chasm!"

Daunte hadn't forgotten, but the sudden anticipation he felt was startling. He dug into his breakfast before speaking again. "It's been carefully mapped out," he told Arin. "Viki warned us that she could sense an increased military presence in multiple cities across the country, so we will most likely not be able to teleport directly to K'alak'i Patieba. Our best chance is to march there."

"They probably know about our new hideout and that you're our leader now," Arin said, swallowing his food loudly. "Hey, Varnaz is still out looking for Lord Lorik isn't he?"

"He volunteered for the job himself," Daunte confirmed. "That was three days ago, however. But he did say that he didn't want us to wait for him to commence this campaign, so hopefully after we liberate the Dark Chasm we'll return to find that Varnaz has found Lord Lorik and the other survivors of Agameru."

Arin nodded eagerly. "Are you guys going to march upon the Dark Chasm?"

"Not necessarily," Daunte said. "We're more organized now, but we still lost many soldiers. Granted we both know our current forces outnumber the forces at the Dark Chasm, but if we're not careful then we could find ourselves facing Sheikh Nuori and _her_ forces."

"The deserters returned though, didn't they?"

"That's true. But we still have to be careful." _This_ had actually shocked Daunte. The Liberation Army soldiers who had deserted had left because they did not have faith in Bearyl Lutis. Once word began to spread that Daunte had been appointed leader, every single soldier who had deserted resurfaced and pledged themselves to Daunte. Daunte didn't quite know what to think of these men and women who left the Liberation Army, but Caesar advised him to welcome them back. Daunte was going to do so anyways, but he felt reassurance that his strategist also agreed with him.

 _I'll have to work hard to prove myself to them, so they don't feel inclined to desert again._

"I'm finished," Daunte said, setting down his chopsticks. "How about you, Arin?"

"I'm all done!"

"We're meeting to march in an hour, so before I go upstairs I'm going to make the rounds."

"Can I come with you?" Arin asked, jumping out of his chair. "I like walking around with you!"

"Sure."

This was another thing Caesar encouraged; making the rounds of the compound and checking upon his soldiers, in addition to learning and remembering everyone's names. Caesar had mentioned how Bearyl Lutis had _never_ made the rounds of the previous headquarters, and how he spent most of his time in the war room. It had made him isolated from the soldiers, and Daunte had seen first-hand what happens when a leader didn't acknowledge their own troops and was careless with their lives. So Daunte always made sure to check up on everyone throughout the compound when he woke up.

It wasn't really anything new anyway.

Admittedly, Daunte still felt awkward walking through the Liberation Army headquarters as new leader. Every single person he passed, whether they be in uniform or not, immediately stopped and saluted him. He wasn't use to people deferring to him, and it felt awkward to have seasoned soldiers, with _years_ more experience than him, put him on a pedestal. He probably would never get over how much people looked up to him and how much faith everyone had in him.

 _I will need to work harder, to prove that I'm worthy of this attention and to make sure we succeed._

Slowly but surely they were claiming the former Chapel as a proper headquarters. While many of the six buildings around the perimeter were still empty, the building northwest of the main building had been designated for all their shops. The building due north had a large first floor room, consisting of a dusty bar and a rather large stage. Desiree was constantly making use of the stage for dancing. Tidur transformed the second floor into an inn, and Oboro and Shou transformed half of the third floor into their detective office. The building northeast was currently empty, but the first floor looked like it could be converted into a restaurant—once Daunte could a chef for it, that is.

The buildings due south and to the southwest were empty, and the building to the southeast was nearly empty, except that Allise had claimed a room on the third floor. Daunte was puzzled as to why she wanted to have her living quarters in a nearly empty building when there was plenty of room in the main building. Daunte, Arin, and Caesar of course had rooms on the fourth floor, as did Varnaz. On the third floor Eamon and Gunther had taken rooms, and on the second floor Roen and Felicity had taken rooms. On the ground floor the two rooms on the west side of the main hall had been merged and converted into the infirmary, while the two rooms on the opposite side of the hall were still empty.

 _There's plenty of room. It's very odd that Allise wants to be by herself like that._

On the landing in the main hall, Daunte saw Viki standing beside a giant mirror with a platinum-colored frame. She was thankfully fully alert, though she wasn't wearing the nose plugs that Caesar had gotten for her. He still wore a smile however and approached her. "Good morning, Viki."

"Lord Daunte, good morning!" Viki squeaked, and quickly bowed. "I-I apologize, but I'm still sensing high levels of military presence in multiple cities!"

"No, no, it's all right. How are you doing?"

"I'm doing well, thank you. OH!" she suddenly shouted, startling both Daunte and Arin. "I-I almost forgot! I must give you something, my Lord!"

"Like what?" Daunte asked.

Viki reached into her left sleeve. "Now that we have a secure headquarters, I know this a perfect opportunity to give this to you." She withdrew an object and placed it into Daunte's outstretched hand. "Here. Please don't lose this, this is the only one I have."

Daunte stared at it. It was a mirror slightly larger than his hand with a platinum-colored framed. It was strange, though—the glass in the mirror was dark, and he could barely see his reflection. He looked up at the mirror beside Viki, and saw that the glass was also very dark.

"That's a Blinking Mirror," Viki explained. She gestured to the mirror beside her. "It's linked to this mirror. So long as you're not in a deep dungeon, that mirror will instantly teleport you back to this headquarters from anywhere in this country. So long as you're within the borders of Nagarea, it will bring you right back here."

"That's incredible!" Arin exclaimed. He looked at Daunte. "Y-You could use that mirror to teleport all of the children of the Dark Chasm back here!"

Daunte laughed softly as he looked at the Blinking Mirror, and he positively grinned at Viki. "Thank you for this."

"I-I'm sorry I waited so long to give that to you," Viki said. "But given the circumstances—"

"No, I completely understand. We didn't yet have a headquarters, and with everything going on there would've been a real risk of _both_ of those mirrors breaking!" Daunte tucked the Blinking Mirror into an inner pocket. "I'll keep this safe. I promise."

Viki positively smiled at him. "Thank you, Lord Daunte."

Daunte checked in on Clara, and thankfully the young doctor wasn't overloaded with patients. In fact, she was too preoccupied with yelling at her only patient, who apparently had foolishly drunken sea water. Even Arin laughed at this as they headed out onto the grounds. He saw an area that had been roped off into a large circle, and he knew that was the area Jantu had claimed for combat training and duel practice. He saw Liron standing near the tavern/inn, trying out her many sound sets on volunteers. On the second floor he saw Tidur and Esther hanging blankets out of windows and beating at them with dusters. The windows on that building were stunning; Esther had undoubtedly tried out the window sets that Daunte had given her. "Good morning!" he called up to them.

"Good morning!" they chimed back.

He looked inside the tavern and thankfully saw no one passed out in there. He did see Priscilla and Desiree sitting at a table talking over coffee. "Do you want coffee?" he asked Arin.

Arin made a face. "Coffee tastes bad!"

Daunte snorted, and they walked towards their commercial space building. On the second floor Gusoku was opening the windows, and Daunte saw Gizli sitting on the window's edge on the third floor smoking a cigarette while Cairoh was cleaning the glass of another window. "Good morning!" Daunte greeted.

"Good morning!" Gusoku and Cairoh chimed down to him.

"Ugh," Gizli said, flicking cigarette ashes out the window.

"Good morning, Lord Daunte!" Ichirou burst out of the front door, grinning from ear to ear. "Man—I can't get over how much space we have now! We'll be able to hold anything!"

"I'm glad," Daunte told him. "But don't work too hard."

Ichirou shrugged. "I don't think I'm working hard—"

"Remembering that you're a kid and you're allowed to act like a kid," Daunte interrupted him. "You're very important to the Army, but you don't have to be all business all the time, Ichirou. You can take a day off."

"Well…all right." Ichirou nodded eagerly. "Thanks, Lord Daunte!"

"You're awesome, Big Brother," Arin gushed after they walked away. But Daunte shrugged. "It's not awesome to tell a kid to act like a kid. We may be an Army and we may have been through a lot, but we deserve to take a breather every now and then."

"That's why you're awesome!"

Daunte sighed painfully as they neared the cliff's edge. Below them, soldiers were hard at work replacing the rotted wood of the stairwell and the dock. They were nearly done. The lift, however, still had its rusted panel. Daunte knew they'd need someone with the right experience to take care of it.

"Isn't that dragon girl and her dragon down there?" Arin wondered, leaning over the rail.

"Yes, Sharon and Suna are down there," Daunte said, pulling Arin away from the rail. "She insisted. I guess Dragon Knights sleep in caves."

"But how have they gotten back up here?" Arin wondered out loud. "I-I mean they've torn out all the bad wood, but the stairwell isn't finished! And her dragon is still too tiny to carry her! Yet somehow she always turns up in the evening for supper at the tavern! Isn't that weird?"

"I've seen weirder," Daunte admitted, though he couldn't help but peek over the side.

"Hey…Daunte?" Arin asked.

"What is it?"

"I-I-I…" he shifted his weight from one foot to the other before continuing. "I know that…that you're marching the Army to liberate the Dark Chasm. But I—"

"You want to come?" Daunte finished.

"I won't get in the way, I promise!" Arin pleaded. "B-But I want to see that place liberated! I want to see all of those awful people pay for what they've done! I-I…" he ducked his head. "That place…that awful place almost killed me. So I _want_ to see it dismantled!" he clasped his hands in front of himself and looked at Daunte pleadingly. "Please let me go with you! Pretty please?"

Daunte didn't know just how difficult the upcoming battle would be, but the thought of bringing Arin with him made him uncomfortable. Not only was he still just a little kid, but there was a high risk of death if they got ambushed. Not to mention the fact that Arin had never seen the horrors of a battlefield…

 _But he survived the horrors of the Dark Chasm. And—And I don't know exactly what he had witnessed when the previous headquarters was evacuated. But I don't want him to be hurt. What should I do?_

He didn't know exactly what the right choice was, so he put a hand on Arin's shoulder. "I'll speak with Caesar about it."

Arin nodded eagerly. "Thank you! Thank you so much, Daunte!" he tugged on Daunte's hand. "Here, let's go to the war room now! It's almost time for your meeting, isn't it?"

"Sure. And after we meet we're going to march." Daunte allowed himself to be dragged by Arin, taking a brief moment to enjoy the fact that his little brother had fully recovered from the brink of death. He glanced around them and found that people were watching their display with amusement. Daunte however didn't feel embarrassed.

 _Today is the day we march. With any luck, we'll liberate the Dark Chasm on the first try._

* * *

A large group had gathered in the war room. Daunte recognized Caesar, Gunther, Allise, Eamon, Farzin, Roen, and Felicity, and everyone saluted when Daunte and Arin entered. "Lord Daunte, perfect timing!" Caesar announced, approaching them. "Oh, and you brought Arin too! I imagine he wants to see the Dark Chasm liberated?"

"Yes, I do!" Arin agreed.

Caesar smiled lazily at Daunte. "After everything he suffered in that place, I think it would be fitting if he come with us."

"R-Really?" Daunte asked. He saw the others shift with surprise.

"Sure," Caesar said. "Our plan is solid. There should be no danger to Arin by coming with us!"

"Yay!" Arin cheered, pumping his fists.

"Is this wise?" Allise spoke up.

Caesar shrugged nonchalantly as he returned to the table in the center of the room. "It wouldn't be the first time I saw a child on the battlefield. But now that everyone is here, let's get down to business. Our position is here." he pointed to the west coastline of Nagarea. "While the Dark Chasm is here." he drew his finger across the map towards the southeast of the country. "Viki has warned that cities across Nagarea have an increased military presence. Quite prominently in K'alak'i Patieba. So it would be in our best interest to _not_ teleport the soldiers to K'alak'i Patieba."

"If K'alak'i Patieba has the most military personnel, then the Theocracy must be aware what our mission is," Eamon spoke up. "We may be leading our soldiers into another trap."

"That is a possibility, but luckily we're not," Caesar said, looking up. "The scouts we've sent ahead have reported though the security at the Dark Chasm has increased in size, there is no standing Army there."

"To go off-topic briefly," Gunther said. "The scouts we sent up to explore the underground cave have not returned yet."

"Oh, but we sent them just yesterday," Caesar reminded him. "It will most likely take them awhile to navigate the cavern. But getting back on topic, to avoid walking into another ambush we will split up the Army and march from the south and the west here and here." he pointed to each location on the map. "There is only one official entrance into the Dark Chasm, and that's from a lift in the north." He pointed to the location on the map. "However, our last report from our scouts indicated that there are thirty soldiers stationed around the perimeter of the mine, which is why I believe we should approach from behind, and from their left."

"W-What about the ruin?" Roen spoke up. "Have they found the ruin?"

"Ruin?" Farzin asked.

"T-The Dark Chasm was built on top of a ruin," Daunte explained. He held up his right hand. "That's where I found this True Rune. That was how we escaped."

Caesar's grin broadened. "We received no reports regarding any ruins, which indicates to us that they have not yet been found."

"Are you serious?" Felicity asked. "I-I mean, they followed us into the ruin when we made our escape! Did they really not find the way out?!"

"Well, that's better for us," Gunther announced, cracking his knuckles. "So we'll mobilize the Army to move, and we'll attack from above and from below!"

Caesar nodded. "Then we'll modify the plan accordingly. We'll send in an initial party into the ruin to mark a path for the soldiers. Then while the soldiers move in from behind, other units will attack from here." he pointed with his finger. "We'll engage the soldiers while we evacuate the Dark Chasm. I think it would also be in our best interests to destroy any and all mining equipment we find. We don't want them to sentence any more children to this place before we overthrow the government."

"If I may say so," Eamon spoke up. "You're awfully confident about the success of this operation."

"Of course I am," Caesar said. "We're going to succeed. Isn't that right, Lord Daunte?"

Daunte was also surprised by Caesar's confidence but nodded. "Absolutely. We're going to succeed."

"All right, then." Caesar straightened. "My Lord, would you like to lead the initial party into the ruin?"

"We're sending our commander into the ruins?!" Farzin demanded. "Then who will lead the Army with the upper level attack?!"

"Yes, I want to send Lord Daunte into the ruin," Caesar said. "He's already travelled the ruin, so he will be better prepared to go back through it than any of our scouts. In addition, he will most likely be the first face the children see when the attack commences. It will be comforting for the children to see a familiar face rescuing them, and it will boost the reputation of the Army to have the commander himself appear behind enemy lines and attack from within. What do you think, my Lord?" he looked to Daunte. "Do you approve?"

Daunte nodded. "I was going to volunteer anyways."

"Excellent!" Caesar cheered, straightening. "Once we arrive at the Dark Chasm, we will have very little time to stop and talk. I will arrange the party you will take with you into the ruins now."

"I'm going," Roen immediately volunteered.

"As am I," Felicity chimed in. "I've been waiting for an opportunity to dismantle that place with my own hands!"

"Then I will have to insist on coming with you as well," Allise suddenly spoke up. Everyone looked at her with shock and she shrugged. "I too was also sentenced to the Dark Chasm. Though I wasn't there as long as the four of you were, it still wasn't a pleasant experience for me. I want to personally see to its end as well."

"All right, that's three volunteers," Caesar said.

"I'll go too," Gunther quickly said, but Caesar shook his head. "Remember Gunther, that you're commanding one of the ground units attacking from above. I can't send you with Lord Daunte when you have a unit to take care of."

"Oh. Right." Gunther slightly deflated, but Daunte knew he had volunteered more for Allise's sake than anything else.

"My Lord, you have the option to take two more people with you," Caesar said, regaining Daunte's attention. "Who would you like it to be?"

Daunte thought about it for a long moment before deciding. "Priscilla, because of her own military experience."

"Good choice," Caesar said. "And the last person?"

Daunte looked to Farzin. "You…You said you had combat experience, right?"

The room shifted with shock that Daunte requested the aid of an ex-Cleric for reconnaissance. Farzin however held up a thick book. "There is a lot of power behind books."

Daunte nodded. "You're still in your Cleric robes. I want the children of the Dark Chasm to see you, so that they know that not all of the Clerics are corrupt."

"Well, that's…a nice gesture," Farzin said. "I would be happy to assist."

"Oh!" Caesar shouted, startling everyone. He slammed his fist into his palm. "I almost forgot! I haven't given you your present yet!"

"Present?" Daunte asked.

"My present to you to congratulate you on your promotion, Lord Daunte," Caesar said. "I've been meaning to give it to you, but there hasn't been the right time!"

"Y-You don't need to give me anything. I—"

"No, I insist!" Caesar shook his head. "How about this; I'll give it to you during the siege!"

Daunte blinked. Give him a present during the _siege_ on the Dark Chasm? What was Caesar playing at?

 _He's my strategist however, so there must be a reason he's withholding this "present" from me._

Daunte nodded in agreement, if for nothing else than to put up appearances. "All right then. I'll anticipate this present during the siege."

"So now that we have our plan, I believe we are ready to move out," Caesar said. "Are you ready, my Lord?"

Daunte nodded. "Let's go and liberate the Dark Chasm!"

The room cheered, which startled Daunte slightly. But he was very happy with the enthusiasm his soldiers showed with this campaign. _I will succeed. I won't make them regret appointing me as leader!_

* * *

The Army separated and marched towards the Dark Chasm. They arrived within three days, which stunned Daunte as he expected them to run into interference along the way. Other than tougher monsters to face on the road, there was little to no incident.

They regrouped fifteen kilometers away from the Dark Cham, and Daunte was relieved to see the entire Army arrive unscathed. With all of their current losses and even with the return of the deserters, their current standing Army had barely three hundred soldiers serving. But Daunte refused to be disheartened by their small numbers.

 _There are over three hundred children in the Dark Chasm. Once we invade, the guards and the soldiers will be outnumbered._

"All right Lord Daunte, this is your cue," Caesar told him. "We'll wait an hour after your group enters to send the soldiers in. The rest will wait for your signal. Once we know that you have breached the Dark Chasm, we will attack from above. However, if we don't receive word that you have arrived within three hours, we will march in regardless. Are you prepared?"

Daunte nodded. "We've stocked supplies with Cairoh, and Gusoku provided us new armor. I'm going to leave markers in the form of dragon incense in the middle of the hallways for the soldiers to follow. The incense will heal anyone's wounds, as there are monsters down there, and since the air is stagnant the scent will not travel far and with any luck guide our soldiers where they need to go."

Caesar nodded. "Good. I have given you all your plan, now if you'll excuse me…" he promptly turned his horse northward. "I'll see you all later."

"Wait, what?!" Gunther sputtered. "Y-You're not leading up into battle?! Where are you going?!"

Caesar grinned at him. "I'm getting Lord Daunte his "present". I promised to give it to him during the siege, after all."

"In that case, can you take Arin with you?" Daunte suddenly asked, pulling the child forward. "I don't want him caught in the middle of the fight."

"Daunte, I'll be all right!" Arin protested.

"I'll gladly take him with me," Caesar said. He directed his horse to kneel. "Come, Arin. We're going to do something great for your big brother."

Arin huffed out a sigh, but climbed behind Caesar on the horse. Daunte himself let out a short sigh as the horse straightened. Whatever Caesar was planning on giving to him couldn't have been too dangerous if he allowed Arin to come along for it.

"You all know what to do," Caesar announced. "Wait for our lordship's signal! This operation is very important, as we will be foreseeing the destruction of the Theocracy's symbol of fear! What they use to bully the people into submission! Today, we will succeed!"

The Army cheered, and Caesar gave a wave as he rode off with Arin. Daunte nodded to Gunther. "See you on the inside."

"Be careful, my Lord," Gunther said. Many other shouted encouragements to Daunte as they marched towards the entrance of the ruins. Each meter that they got closer to the ruins, Daunte's heart began pounding harder and harder in his throat. He couldn't believe this moment was real. Finally— _Finally_ they were liberating the Dark Chasm, and ending the suffering of all those children!

 _I never once thought that_ _ **I**_ _would be the one leading this campaign._

Thankfully there was no ambush when they reached the entrance of the cave. There were no new monsters as they walked down the long tunnel that led into the throne room where they had made their escape what felt like eons ago. It felt like it happened another lifetime ago, and Daunte was overwhelmed being back.

"The entrance should be behind the throne," Roen said, pointing to the area in question. Indeed, there was still an opening in the wall. He looked at Daunte. "But the way we got out—we fell into the ruins via a sinkhole. They probably sealed the sinkhole up."

"That's true," Felicity said. "But there has to be another way around. We were more concerned about fleeing the place to properly explore it."

"I agree," Daunte said. "And we should avoid retracing our steps anyway. It took us a day and a half to get out of here. We have three hours to get into the Dark Chasm before the siege begins. There should be many hidden doorways, so we should look for them."

"Agreed," Allise said.

Armed with torches, they quickly began re-exploring the ruins. Daunte expected to see the same rats, spiders, and other monsters they had encountered from the last time they were in there. Their skills had greatly improved since then, so he had expected the return to be much easier.

So he was _very_ shocked to find that the monsters were larger, and much tougher than before. When they were last there, one single Bronze Sun almost killed. Now they were facing two or _three_ Bronze Suns at a time in battle. The rats were larger too, more rabid, as were the spiders. And to Daunte's incredible horror, they even encountered _walking corpses_ down there!

 _How? Why are these fights so much more difficult than they were before? I-It doesn't seem possible that the population of monsters down here would change so drastically in less than a year!_

However, everyone kept their cool and continued to fight. And to Daunte's shock, Farzin really _was_ fighting with a hardcover book! The ex-Cleric used the book to beat the monsters they faced, though the sight of it was slightly absurd. However, he also made use of a Cyclone Rune attached to his left hand, which was slightly _less_ absurd.

Daunte made sure to leave the dragon incense as markers as they traveled. However, dread filled him as he realized that forty-five minutes had passed, and all they had to show for it was constant fighting and wandering. He started to get very worried they wouldn't make it in time, and he cursed himself for not having enough foresight to ask Caesar for more time to explore.

 _I can't give up! We must keep pushing forward!_

Luckily, things began turning in their favor. They checked the walls for secret doors, and thankfully Allise found one in one of the hallways. They stepped into the room and what they saw caused Daunte's jaw to drop.

It was an exotic-looking mining cart. It looked nothing like the mining carts from within the Dark Chasm. Even the rail track it was on looked different. He quickly looked to his right, and saw a long hallway into darkness.

"Well, this should save us some much needed time," Allise said.

"This…is weird," Felicity said. "Why is this here? How is it that the rails and the wheels aren't rusted over?"

"Whatever the reason, let's not look a gift horse in the mouth," Roen said, quickly climbing into the cart. "Let's hurry!"

Daunte also questioned the logic of this cart being there in the middle of a damp ruin, but he shrugged it off and climbed into the front. Priscilla pulled the lever in the back, and Daunte suddenly had whiplash as the cart sprung to life and immediately whipped down the track.

Roen and Felicity screamed, and they all hung on for dear life as the cart flew down the long, straight track at lightning speed. And while Daunte was happy that this reduced their travel time, he was afraid that they would crash at the end of the track. "P…Priscilla!" he shouted behind him. "W-When I tell you too, pull the brake!"

"R-Right!" Priscilla shouted back to him.

After ten minutes of travel, Daunte saw light at the end of the tunnel. "NOW!" he shouted.

Priscilla immediately pulled the brake lever. Daunte gagged as he slammed into the front of the cart, and Allise and Roen slammed into _him_ as the cart abruptly slowed to a crawl. They reached the end of the track, where the cart gently bumped the bumper at the end of the track. They took a moment to catch their breaths and got out of the cart onto wobbly legs.

"Our reinforcements should be entering the ruins now," Allise said, clearing her throat. She looked around them and frowned. "And…we reached a dead end."

Indeed, their destination was a circular room without a door. But Daunte wasn't deterred, and sure enough they found another secret door directly in front of the cart. When they entered the new room it revealed, he immediately recognized it. "This!" he shouted. "T-This is where we found the True Rune!"

"We're definitely close now!" Felicity declared. "Let's hurry!"

The corridors were still dark, but Daunte and his friends remembered enough the way to do. Daunte however felt incredibly foolish that they hadn't thought to look for a hidden door in the room when they were last down there.

 _Then again, what would I have done with it?_

Within ten minutes, they reached another dead end. But Daunte looked closely at their surroundings. The hole was missing from the high wall, but this was undoubtedly the room he had fallen into. He nodded to his party. "This is it."

"They must have found the hole you had created and sealed it," Felicity said.

"Oh, there it is," Allise said, pointing with a torch. Daunte looked in that direction and saw a section of packed dirt in the wall surrounded by stone. Allise smiled at him. "My Lord, shall I use the Pale Gate Rune to reopen it?"

"I…think that would be excessive," Daunte said reluctantly. He looked to Roen. "Can you focus your Fire Rune on that wall? We'll have to be careful, it's still the middle of the workday."

"Absolutely," Roen said. He took position and raised his hand. " _Flaming Arrows_!" He concentrated the attack on that wall, and the poorly repaired wall immediately collapsed.

There was a shout on the other side of the wall as light filtered into the secret room, and two faces immediately came to the new hole. "W-What the— _Daunte_!" one of the children shouted. "And Roen and Felicity, too?!"

Daunte's stomach turned when he saw the teenage boy and preteen girl standing there. Both of them were pale and had gaunt, hollow faces. Granted he hadn't exactly looked healthy when he left the Dark Chasm, but these two looked _far_ worse than Daunte remembered his fellow prisoners looking. "We're back," he called up to them. "We're here to liberate the Dark Chasm."

The girl shrieked, but clapped both hands over her mouth. The boy's expression turned deathly serious. "One moment." He quickly disappeared from sight.

"Where is he going?" Roen wondered aloud.

"D-Daunte, do you mean it?" the girl whispered down to them. "You're really here to rescue us?" there were tears in her voice, and Daunte saw teardrops fall from her eyes and into the hole.

"O-Of course I am," Daunte told her. "I promised I would be back, and here I am."

"Oh Daunte, it's been awful!" the girl suddenly wailed, her voice echoing into the room. "They—They—We've been given almost no food, they given us longer hours to work, and t-t-t-the beatings!" she was on the verge of hysteria. "T-They've allowed the guards to carry _scourge whips_ to beat us!"

"WHAT?!" Allise shrieked. Her shout of horror and anger startled Daunte, but the girl's words caused bile to rise in his throat. _O-Oh no. I knew things had to be bad for everyone after we escaped, but…Damn it! Damn it all! We should've come sooner!_

"I've seen what a scourge does to a human back," Priscilla said, shuddering slightly. "Just thinking of what it could do to a child…" she shuddered.

"I don't hear you cretins working back there!" a guard shouted from above. "You—WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"

The boy suddenly returned and tossed a long, thick roll of coarse rope down to them. "He's coming. We'll hold him off, but please hurry and get up here!"

Daunte didn't even wait for him to finish. The rope barely hit the floor when her grabbed it and began frantically climbing up the rope. It had a considerable amount of slack to it that made him nervous, however. "One at a time!" he warned his companions. "The rope isn't strong enough to hold more than one of us at a time!"

The girl above them shrieked, and Daunte heard the unmistakable sounds of a fistfight. "Oh, so the punk wants to play rough?!" the guard hollered. "Let me oblige!" he blew his whistle, and Daunte instinctively flinched as unpleasant memories surfaced in his mind.

"Daunte, _hurry_!" Felicity shouted below him as the fighting above rose in volume and ferocity.

Daunte didn't need to be told twice. He reached the mouth of the hole, just in time to witness three guards surrounding the boy who had given him the rope, alternating between curb-stomping him and beating him with a scourge. He was curled in a fetal position, protecting his head, while the girl screamed and sobbed.

Daunte saw red, and shouted in rage. "GET OFF HIM!" he was so angry at the sight of the guards beating the boy that he raised his right hand. " _Berate_!"

The guards screamed in terror and agony as Daunte's spell rained down upon them. Within seconds they were bruised and bleeding. One guard froze when he saw Daunte. "You—!"

" _There was an accident with the mining carts this afternoon. Your roommate Kass was crushed when his cart derailed. A fitting end for a blasphemous traitor like him."_

This was the guard who had callously told Daunte that Kass had died. Unable to help himself, Daunte launched himself forward and punched the guard square in the face, putting as much force behind his tekko as possible. He felt the man's nose break, in addition to several of his teeth, but the blow did little to quell the rage inside of him.

"I-INTRUDERS!" another guard shouted. He grabbed the severely injured one as he howled in pain. "There are intru—OOF!" he was struck square in the head with a shovel and fell to the ground unconscious.

"I've been waiting _years_ to do that!" the wielder of the shovel rasped. She was a teenage girl, surely Daunte's age, but being overworked and underfed gave her the appearance of someone two or three years younger. She looked to Daunte and the rest of the group as they climbed out of the hole. "Please tell me there are more than six of you."

"There are," Daunte reassured her. Felicity and Allise bent down to check on the fallen boy. "The Liberation Army is ready to move. We're not leaving until all of you are liberated."

"You'll never get away with this!" the third guard shouted. "You traitorous, evil children! You…" his voice trailed off as he suddenly found himself by the rest of the children within the tunnel. All of them were armed with their work tools, and all of them looked upon him with rage.

"By Nagar, this is horrendous!" Farzin exclaimed, looking at the physical condition of the children. "I-I had heard rumors, but this…this is worse than anything I could've ever imagined! There is no way that Nagar would _ever_ approve of His children being worked to death like this!"

"Are you all right?" Daunte asked, helping the injured boy to stand. Behind him the other were proceeding to exact vengeance upon the guards, but he deliberately ignored it. "I'm sorry. I should've come soon—"

"You're here now, that's what matters," the boy rasped. He looked towards the hole. "Is that a way out?"

"Yes," Daunte said. "It's a ruin. We left markers for all of you to evacuate through, and soldiers were following behind. We have healers on standby to take care of you all, so if you move now you can meet up with the soldiers."

"W-What?" Roen said suddenly. "The ruin is full of monsters. Is it really a good idea to evacuate the Dark Chasm through this?"

"I don't care how many damned monsters I have to fight!" the boy shouted, grabbing a pick axe. "There is _nothing_ that is going to keep me here!" he put two fingers in his mouth and whistled loudly. "Let's get out of here!"

The other children immediately stopped beating the guards and hurried to the rope. "We've got this," another girl said. "But there's still over three hundred of us you have to save!"

"Yeah, let's hurry and get this over with," Roen said. "Everyone's suffered long enough."

Daunte nodded. "Let's go!" they raced past the severely injured guards and towards the main area of the Chasm. Predictably, their commotion drew the attention of guards, and nine were ready to engage them in combat. "Prepare to die!"

"Best Friends!" Daunte shouted, mobilizing for their unite attack. Despite being outnumbered, they soundly beat the guards that had engaged them. Daunte realized however he was taking far too much joy to beating these awful people who had made his life a living hell for three years, and quickly refocused himself. "Children of the Dark Chasm!" he shouted up the mineshaft. From above and below them, the children and even the guards had stopped what they were doing to gape at them. "I am Daunte! Leader of the Liberation Army and former prisoner of the Dark Chasm! We are here to liberate you all!"

For a moment, the children stared at him stunned. As did the guards. However, the children recovered quicker than guards.

"We're free!" one girl shouted, and quickly struck the closest guard with her shovel. Barely a breath later, the entire mineshaft erupted into shouts and then suddenly everyone was fighting. The guards became overwhelmed by the starving, overworked children who attacked them with their tools. Some even stole batons, whips, and scourges and used them on the guards. Soon, the entire mineshaft was consumed by a violent riot.

"Please, everyone!" Daunte tried to appeal for calm. "Leave this to the Liberation Army soldiers! Please, come down to Tier Seven to evacuate!" But less than thirty children listened to him and came down to evacuate. The rest were too caught up in their anger and grief to listen.

"Well it looks like might not need the reinforcements after all," Allise said blithely. There was a shriek from above, and right before their eyes a guard plummeted down the mineshaft. "I've seen that happen a few times to other children," she said grimly.

"I'm amazed they have the energy to fight like this," Farzin said.

"Anger does amazing things to your adrenaline," Felicity said.

A sharp whistle filled the air, and Daunte hollered as an explosion of lightning struck Tier Five, striking two dozen children. The screams of pain reverberated the mineshaft, and the rioting abruptly halted.

"Thank you for proving me right, boy."

Daunte stiffened at this voice. _Oh no…_

He looked up. There she was—the Matron, on Tier One. She was surrounded by fifty soldiers on either side of her, totaling one hundred. All of them were armed with bows and arrows, and all of them were pointed down towards them.

"Congratulations on your promotion to leader of the Liberation Army," the Matron called down to Daunte. "And thank you for personally appearing in the Dark Chasm to save the heathens. That will make killing you, and taking the Rune of Restoration, all the easier for me."

"We're not alone!" Daunte shouted, but he found himself jostled back as Roen and Felicity took protective stances in front of him. "The Liberation Army is about to advance here, and I have soldiers coming up from the ruins beneath us! If you want to avoid unnecessary bloodshed, surrender now!"

"I find all of this hard to believe," the Matron responded. "Considering Sheikh Nuori is about to ambush your soldiers before they even arrive."

Daunte's blood ran cold. No…that couldn't be possible! None of the scouts said anything about Sheikh Nuori ambushing them!

"And as for the soldiers coming up from the Sindar ruins," the Matron said. "Right before coming to this spot I unleashed a considerable supply of _terrible things_ down there to greet them. Isn't that the exact same area you're evacuating the children to?"

Daunte felt light-headed. How…How could this have happened? His very first mission, and he's killed the very people he was trying to protect and save!

 _I'm a failure. What was I thinking, agreeing to lead an entire Army?!_

"But," the Matron continued. "I will put a halt to all these things—Sheikh Nuori's ambush, the monsters in the ruins—if you give me your True Rune. If you don't, then your Army will be slaughtered and I will be forced to continue using my Rune to hurt these children you're trying so hard to save." She raised her right hand and Daunte saw it glow. He then remembered the blast from earlier, and how similar it had been to the assault the Matron had laid upon them when they escaped, and he knew she had struck those children with the spell. "Sound like a fair deal?"

Daunte suddenly became angry, and snapped his teeth. "Maybe I should use the True Rune to _kill you_!" he bellowed out.

The Matron threw back her head and laughed loudly. He still could not see her face, but he saw her steely gaze look back down at him as she recovered. "As if _you_ could ever hope of killing _me_! You've lost, boy! Just give up, because you have no hope of defeating me!"

"Then why don't we change that?"

Daunte stiffened, and he saw the Matron's eyes go wide. She quickly spun around and looked upwards towards the top of the Dark Chasm. One by one, the other soldiers did as well. Daunte followed their gaze, and sucked in a sharp breath.

"Well, it looks like you're all having fun," Keiran Umed called down to them. His sword was unsheathed. "Do you mind if we join in?"

The moment he finished that sentence, soldiers emerged on all sides of him, framing the large hole at the top. Mihr stepped up to Keiran's left side and unsheathed his own sword. Daunte looked around the circumference of the Dark Chasm in shock. None of the soldiers, including Keiran and Mihr, were in uniform, but he recognized their faces. These were all Sheikh Umed's men. He even saw _Lanny_ standing with the soldiers!

 _W-What? Is Sheikh Keiran Umed…he's here to HELP us?!_

"Ahhhhh." The crowd of soldiers parted and Caesar stepped forward, holding onto Arin's hands. He was positively grinning. "I love it when a plan comes together."


	31. Chapter Four: Part Two

Part Two

It slowly dawned on Daunte that _this_ was the present Caesar had promised to get him. After all, what better way to boost morale for the Liberation Army than to strike an alliance with a _Sheikh_?

"It's him!" one of the Holy Army soldiers shouted, pointing to Keiran. "The heretic! It's him!"

"Heretic?" Roen and Felicity echoed.

Keiran raised his head slightly, though his gaze didn't linger from the Matron. "If I'm a heretic of a faith that tortures children and murders its own congregates, then I'll _proudly_ be a heretic!"

"Keiran Umed," the Matron called up to him in a cold voice. "You have been charged with treason for the attempted murder of a High Cleric. You have been stripped of your rank, excommunicated from the Nagarist Order, and are currently supposed to be en route to Mlkwt Alsmwat under heavy guard to be sentenced."

"Well, clearly I'm not," Keiran answered her. His soldiers rumbled with laughter.

The Matron predictably, wasn't amused. "So you would rather risk condemning your entire family—and the families of these idiots who followed you into treason—certain death under Original Sin?"

The soldiers abruptly stopped laughing. Keiran however looked unmoved. "As you're not doubt aware, my parents are dead and I have no siblings. So I don't risk much in terms of my family. As for the families of my soldiers, well…" he leaned forward slightly. "It would be hard for you to sentence them under Original Sin if you can't even _find_ them."

"You—"

"But thank you, my Lady, for confirming to me that we have made the right decision," Keiran said. He then looked beyond the Matron and towards Daunte. "Lord Daunte, I know we have met on opposing sides on the battlefield, but my soldiers and I are now ready to stand at your side!"

"It's true, Big Brother!" Arin called down to him. "They're really here to help us! The Sheikh brought almost all his soldiers here to help you!"

Daunte let out the breath he was holding, feeling the tension drain from his body. He looked at his companions, who looked very skeptical but they nodded to him. He looked back up at Keiran. "Thank you!" he shouted.

The Matron scoffed. "Then I'll save taxpayer money and execute you myself!" her Rune glowed and she fired her lightning spell straight at Keiran.

" _Berserk Blow_!" Mihr suddenly shouted, raising his left hand and almost elbowing Keiran aside. Daunte saw the symbol of a lightning bolt rise into the air before a lightning spell not quite as large or as powerful as the Matron's flew towards it. The two spells merged and promptly imploded, spending what looked like hundreds of lightning bolts flying in all directions. Luckily the only people these bolts seemed to hit were the soldiers with the Matron.

" _Kill the children_!" the Matron shouted. Those that weren't injured by the blast immediately turned their arrows back down the Dark Chasm.

"Soldiers!" Keiran shouted. As if on cue, dozens of Keiran's soldiers, including Lanny, leapt from the ledges and fell upon the archers, preventing them from firing their arrows.

"Hurry and evacuate _now_!" Daunte shouted.

"W-What about the monsters she summoned?!" Roen exclaimed.

Daunte looked to Priscilla and Farzin. "W-Would you both mind going back down there to assist them?"

"I thought you would never ask," Priscilla said, forcing a smile.

"If we leave, then it will just be the four of you," Farzin pointed out. "Will you be all right?"

"Don't worry about us," Daunte told him. "Worry about the children of the Dark Chasm, our soldiers, but also yourselves. We'll see you later."

"Thank you, Lord Daunte."

Farzin and Priscilla quickly ran back into the tunnel, while Daunte and the others ran up towards Tier Six to assist Keiran and the rest of his soldiers, and the children above.

"Not so fast."

Daunte flinched and stumbled backwards as the Matron suddenly appeared right in front of them. Four Holy Army soldiers raced down to their Tier with their swords drawn.

"You're making me very angry, boy," the Matron told Daunte, her voice chillingly cold. "I'm not going to ask again. Give me the True Rune _now_."

The last time he had faced the Matron, she had dominated the fight with her Rune spells. But that was before Daunte even knew what his True Rune was, or even how to use it. Now he had two spells unlocked on it, so he felt a confidence he didn't feel before. "If you want my Rune, you'll have to come and get it!" he snapped at her.

The Matron sighed, as though she were dealing with an unruly child. "Have it your way then."

Daunte regretted sending Farzin and Priscilla away, as it'd left the four of them facing the Matron and four soldiers. They were outnumbered, but not out skilled.

" _Open Gate_!" Allise called out, using her Pale Gate Rune. It had a devastating impact on the soldiers facing them.

The Matron, however, was unfazed. "As if I would tremble in fear at the power of your _inferior_ Rune." She raised her right hand, and the Rune glowed. Daunte didn't have time to see the symbol of the Rune, as suddenly they were faced with three Cerberus-type monsters!

"Best Friends!" Daunte shouted, calling for the unite attack. The monsters provided a natural wall that prevented them from attacking the Matron, although it _didn't_ prevent the Matron from attacking them with spells. But they persevered, and Daunte used his _Howl_ spell to heal the four of them until they finally took down the monsters and were able to attack the Matron directly. She was powerful, but the four of them against her did allow for them to cause her to finally falter.

"You've improved, boy." She was breathless, but despite this somehow remained standing. "I can see why the Rune of Restoration chose you."

"You need to give up!" Daunte told her harshly. "We're going to liberate the Dark Chasm, and we're going to make sure you will _never_ be able to sentence any more children here!"

The Matron laughed softly. "The children will just end up back here after the Theocracy wins. It's inevitable."

"You—"

"I don't have time for this." She glared at him over her hood. "I'll allow you to keep the Rune for now. I'll even allow you to liberate this place. That is…if you survive this."

"Survive what?" Roen asked, but they quickly got their answer in the form of terrified screams resonating from the Lower Tier. Daunte quickly looked over the edge and his eyes widened. The entire ground below was shifting and rising!

"W-What is that?!" Felicity exclaimed.

"Let's go!" Daunte shouted.

The group ran down to the Lower Tier, as terrified children and guards even ran past them in a panic. There were so many people scrambling to escape, that on Tier One Daunte gave up running down the Tiers and dropped off the side to the Lower Tier. By this time, a form had risen from the mud over three meters high. It was entirely in the shape of mud, but the head formed a familiar shape of a _dragon's_ head.

 _Maybe I should've brought Sharon?_ Daunte wondered.

The beast was massive. It was a dragon created from wet mud, but it was no less fierce than other types of dragons. It opened its mouth and roared, and despite the mud dripping off of it, the mud dragon still breathed fire.

"Best Friends!" Daunte shouted, but his stomach was churning. They needed to kill this thing quickly, because if they didn't more people were going to die. He performed his unite attack against the mud dragon, but the creature barely flinched.

"I should've saved my spells," Allise lamented out loud. " _Open Gate_!"

" _Howl_!" Daunte shouted, though it was more so that they could restore their spells than healing them. The beast hardly wavered, though. It swatted at them with its tail and front and hind legs, and there were even some instances where they were scrambling to get out of the way of its fire breath. The battle was brutally difficult.

Suddenly, a form slammed down onto the mud dragon's back, and the dragon roared in agony. Daunte saw Keiran rise into a standing position, burying his sword deep into the dragon's back.

"Sorry for the delay!" Keiran shouted down to them as jumped off the dragon's back. "I'll fight alongside you, Lord Daunte!"

"Thank you!" Daunte said as Keiran took formation beside him.

Mihr leapt down from Tier Ten to join them. "Let's make this fight more balanced," he said.

"Right," Keiran said. He pointed at the dragon with his sword. " _Soldier's Oath_!"

Both Keiran Mihr lunged in unison at the mud dragon and hacked and slashed at the creature with their swords. Daunte quickly realized that it was a unite attack of their own, and the rapid succession of blows they inflicted upon the dragon were devastating. The dragon roared in pain, and by the end of the attack it was hobbling.

 _I'm glad they're on our side._

With Keiran and Mihr's assistance the fight definitely began tipping in their favor. They utilized their unite attack, Mihr made frequent use of a Lightning Rune, and Keiran made use of a rune called the Wrath Rune that increased his physical strength monumentally. But it took a very long time to bring the mud dragon down. Daunte became acutely aware that the fighting above them had ceased and Keiran's soldiers were shouting words of encouragement down to them. Daunte didn't understand why they just didn't _join_ the fight like Keiran and Mihr did, but he didn't dwell on it.

But in the end they were victorious. Daunte called for the Best Friends unite attack one last time and the beast finally collapsed back into the mud. Then right before their eyes, the creature melted until nothing was left but liquid mud pooling at their ankles.

The entire Dark Chasm erupted into cheers. Daunte caught his breath and wiped at his brow with his hand when Keiran suddenly grasped his hand and shook it. "You fought well," he praised.

Daunte nodded and laughed a little. "You both fought well, too. Thank you for the help."

"Big Brother!"

Daunte looked up. The Dark Chasm's lift, which had somehow been undamaged by the riot and the ensuing fights, reached the Lower Tier and Arin burst out of the elevator and ran towards Daunte. He threw his arms around his brother's waist. "That was scary! I didn't know what would happen to you!"

"I'm alive," Daunte said, ruffling his hair.

"Yes, you are," Caesar said, sauntering over to them. He was still grinning. "We're currently securing the Dark Chasm and accepting surrenders from the remaining guards. All in all, this is a victory for us."

Daunte looked between Caesar and Keiran. "How long have you both been securing an alliance for the Army?"

"Lord Caesar initially reached out to me once you secured your new headquarters," Keiran told him. "During that time I was under house arrest at my Garrison for threatening a High Cleric."

"I saw that," Daunte said. "You pulled your sword on him."

"He forced my hand," Keiran said. "I did not want to kill anyone, but he wouldn't stop ordering me to advance. I had a split decision to decide if I was going to follow his order or not and…" Keiran shrugged. "I decided I would not follow."

"So now you're here," Allise said, walking over to them. "And you want to ally with us."

"I've been branded a heretic, and almost all the men and women under my command defied Holy Decree to prevent my extradition to the capital," Keiran responded. "Allying with the Liberation Army would be the most beneficial thing for us to do, considering the circumstances."

"B-But you led your soldiers against us!" Roen suddenly spoke up. "You ambushed us and fought against us! You killed Liberation Army soldiers!"

"And Liberation Army soldiers killed _my_ soldiers," Keiran said. "I'd say we're about even."

"But—"

"Allow me to make something clear," Keiran interrupted, looking to Daunte. "That the only reason I'm standing here humbling myself to the Liberation Army is because _you_ are leading it, Lord Daunte. If Bearyl Lutis were still in power, I would never consider an alliance with him. Not after the sent the bare minimum of help to Uaminifu to thwart a massacre.

"But you are different, my Lord. Time and time again you have demonstrated a level of integrity I have never seen in another person before. You sacrificed yourself to save a superior officer. You were on the front lines at Uaminifu, trying to defend a thankless city that didn't care about you. And now here you are—leading the charge to liberate this horrendous place." Keiran looked at his surroundings; at the pale, gaunt-faced children staring down at them. His face was grim. "This place is the most disgusting thing I've ever seen in my life. I've actually lost respect for Sheikh Tamara Nuori for allowing this place to become as…" he gestured with his hand. "I can't even find the proper adjective to describe this hellhole. And I'm deeply ashamed that I've served a government that routinely sentences children here. But I digress.

"I'm here right now for my own self-preservation, and for the preservation of the people who serve under me," Keiran admitted, looking back at Daunte. "But I'm also here because I believe in you. I believe that you truly want to make things right for this country, and I believe that you will succeed. I want to _make_ you succeed, my Lord." Keiran saluted him. "If you would have me, we are ready to march in your name."

Daunte knew he could reject Keiran's offer, especially when Keiran had killed so many Liberation Army soldiers. But he also knew that Keiran truly was an honorable man. He'd refused to take Kaylani hostage, allowing for them to rescue her more easily. He did not kill Daunte when given the opportunity, and treated him well as a prisoner despite the fact that Daunte was a traitor. And he'd tried very hard to work behind the scenes to advert the massacre on Uaminifu that he'd been ordered to lead.

Keiran had done a lot of harm to the Liberation Army—but Daunte knew that Keiran Umed was a good man. He couldn't pass up this alliance. Especially when Caesar had arranged it.

So he nodded to the former Sheikh. "I would be honored to have you fight for us."

The soldiers above them cheered loudly, and Keiran smiled as though in relief. "Thank you, my Lord. I know I have done wrong by the Liberation Army, but I will work hard to redeem myself to you all."

"As will I," Mihr said, stepping forward. He unsheathed his sword and held it up. "I swear by my sword Nariek, that I will stand with the Liberation Army and see you through to victory."

Daunte looked at his companions. They all looked apprehensive, but Allise stepped forward and nodded. "I will trust your judgment, my Lord."

"Thank you," Daunte said, nodding.

"Of _course_ Daunte made the right decision!" Arin said. "Daunte is never wrong!" This caused a lot of laughter of course, but Daunte looked up at the children of the Dark Chasm, standing on the Upper Tier all the way down to Tier Ten. So many of them looked exhausted, but several…many of them were crying. It was like they didn't have the energy to be happy about being free, they were just so relieved that their nightmare was finally over that they were overwhelmed with emotion. Daunte felt tears sting his own eyes and he blinked to clear them, but the tears still came out. He quickly wiped at his face and choked, and he struggled to keep his emotions in check. Luckily nobody around him ridiculed him for crying. It almost seemed endearing to them that the success of the mission meant so much to the Liberation Army leader.

It had finally happened. After everything they suffered and after Kass and so many other children had died, the end had finally come.

 _It's over. It's finally over._

* * *

The Matron had fled when she summoned the mud dragon. Nobody found a trace of her, and Daunte was glad for it.

The Liberation Army joined them, stunned that Keiran Umed and his soldiers had also joined their ranks, and collectively they went about properly evacuating the Dark Chasm. Luckily all of the children were accounted for—none had died or were seriously injured by the fight. Only ten guards remained, as did the Clerics of the Dark Chasm, and all of them were forced to assist in the evacuation.

It was very trying, however. All of the children were incredibly malnourished, and several were so exhausted and weak that they needed to be carried out of the Upper Tier.

Daunte did not like seeing this and raised his hand. "Brother, _please_!" Arin hissed. "The last time you did that you passed out!"

"I'll be more careful," Daunte promised him.

"Focus your inner core energy a little better," Caesar said. "So you don't overexert yourself."

Daunte emptied his mind and did breathing exercises. He focused himself so completely on what he would do that everything else just disappeared from his senses. He didn't feel anyone's presence beside him, and it became very quiet. " _Howl_!" he called out, the sound muted.

The spell did not drain his body this time, but it spread out and connected with the soldiers and the children. He strained, wanting the spell to reach out across the entire Dark Chasm and touch every child there. But he did not do it in a way that would weaken him, not like it had before. By the time the spell finished Daunte was panting for breath but he did not collapse like he did before. He shook it off and looked up.

But…

But though the children now had the energy to stand on their own, they still had appalling appearances and still looked weak. He remembered how sick Arin had been, and how the boy had not simply healed for one spell.

 _This will take a lot of work._

"Where is Dr. Yulin?" Arin wondered out loud.

"That's a good question," Felicity said. "Let's go to the infirmary and see if he's all right."

Daunte nodded and looked to Caesar. "I'll leave this to you for the moment."

"Yes, my Lord," Caesar said with a slight bow.

It was surreal walking the narrow, stuffy hallways of the Dark Chasm without having to fear looking over your shoulder for a guard who could (and would) beat you. They passed many children who were being assisted by Liberation Army soldiers being evacuated. Daunte was stopped several times to be hugged and thanked by the children.

"Thank you so much!"

"You came back. I never doubted you for a second!"

"Is this real? Are we really free?"

"Where do we go now?"

Daunte saw the Chapel, and remembered having to kneel in there every day for the Morning Prayer asking for forgiveness for his "sin". He glanced inside and was shocked to see a couple of the Dark Chasm's children in there praying. Since the Nagarean religion had been constantly used against them, he was genuinely shocked to see so many children still have faith.

 _Faith is a powerful thing. Especially when the religion in question has been perverted by monsters who don't actually believe in it._

They finally reached the infirmary, which was empty except for a lone figure leaning over a desk. It was Arin who reacted first. "Dr. Yulin!" and raced forward.

Daunte was surprised by the strong surge of emotions he felt at seeing Dr. Yulin. The one adult in this place who had ever shown them an ounce of compassion and he looked absolutely horrid. His physical appearance was just as bad as the children, and he was hunched over slightly as Arin hugged him. He looked like he'd aged five years, even though it'd been only a few months since they'd left.

"W-What happened to him?" Roen asked numbly.

"He help us escape," Felicity whispered, her eyes wide. "They…They probably punished him."

Daunte surged forward and grabbed Dr. Yulin by the shoulder as the older man stood straight up, his eyes wide. "A-Arin?! You're well! And…" he looked up and saw Daunte. He laughed shortly, and relief and happiness filled his expression. "Daunte. You came back! So it was true then—you've liberated the Dark Chasm!"

"It's more than that," Felicity said, stepping forward. "Daunte is the leader of the Liberation Army. He led the Army here to set you all free."

Dr. Yulin clasped Daunte's hand and looked at the Rune of Restoration on his hand. "Earlier…I felt a surge of energy. That was you, wasn't it? You used your Rune to heal all of us."

"It wasn't enough, though," Daunte said, his tone turning sorrowful. "A-Are you all right, Dr. Yulin? Have they mistreated you?"

"I can live with it," Dr. Yulin reassured him. "When they turned their wrath upon me, it spared another child from being hurt. I _was_ punished when you all escaped, but look at where we are now. You now lead an Army and have saved us. I never doubted for a second that you would come back."

"We're going to bring the children of the Dark Chasm back to our headquarters," Daunte said. "I want you to come with us, Dr. Yulin."

Dr. Yulin nodded. "I course I will. I have a duty to the chil—"

" _Doctor_ ," Daunte interjected, grabbing his other shoulder. "You need to rest and recuperate, along with the children! I have another doctor on-duty at headquarters, you don't need to shoulder this alone anymore! If you want to help, you must take care of yourself first!"

"Right," Roen chimed in. "After everything you've done to take care of us, you need to rest! _Truly_ rest!"

"Besides, if Clara saw you trying to tend to patients in your current condition she'd probably tie you to a bed," Felicity said.

Dr. Yulin laughed loudly, and gave Arin a half-hug. "After everything the Theocracy has done to you children…I can do no better than to assist you in bringing them down."

" _After_ you recover," Daunte said firmly.

Dr. Yulin bowed. "As you command, my Lord."

Hearing him say that was more moving than Daunte expected. He grabbed Dr. Yulin by his arm. "Let's go. You've been here long enough."

"Yes, I daresay I have."

Daunte directed Dr. Yulin to lean on him, but the older man would not allow it and walked on his own. He did allow Daunte to hang onto his arm however, and he kept his head low as they walked back down the hallway towards the main area of the shaft.

"Dr. Yulin?" Arin suddenly asked.

"What is it?"

"What did they do with Kass?"

Daunte froze in his tracks, and Felicity gasped aloud. Daunte wanted to reprimand Arin for the question, but Dr. Yulin raised his hand in front of Daunte's face as though to stop.

"Arin." Despite his exhaustion, Dr. Yulin kept his tone gentle. "Arin, Kass was taken away from here and laid out in the Rocky Plains."

Daunte felt bile rise in his throat. So it was true; Kass wasn't buried. His body was left out there in the Rocky Plains, exposed to the elements and carrion-eaters. Ugh…just thinking about it made him sick.

"He's still out there then?" there was a note of hope in Arin's voice that broke Daunte's heart. "M-Maybe we can find him. Give him a proper bur—"

"Arin," Felicity interrupted. She knelt down so that she was eye-level with Arin. "Kass died before we escaped. That was months ago. He's gone, sweetheart." Daunte could hear the tears in her voice.

"…Oh." The hope inside of Arin deflated, and his shoulders sank slightly.

"Let's get out of here, please," Roen choked. He was frantically wiping at his face with his hand and Daunte nodded. "Absolutely."

They were still evacuating children out of the Upper Tier when they returned. Children paused and rushed over to Dr. Yulin, reaching out for him and asking if he was all right.

"He's fine," Daunte reassured them. "Please, keep moving. We'll get you all the medical attention you need and plenty of food to eat." The children predictably didn't need to be told twice.

Daunte personally led Dr. Yulin up to Tier Two, but then he saw something that made him pause. Sitting on the edge of the ledge, legs hanging over the side, was Lanny. The young swordsman was sitting there as though in a daze, frowning deeply.

Daunte looked at Roen. "Can you help Dr. Yulin? I'll be right with you."

"S-Sure," Roen said, taking Dr. Yulin by the arm. "Here, let me help you."

Daunte approached Lanny and slowly sat down beside him. Lanny didn't seem to notice his approach. Daunte looked above and saw Keiran talking to Gunther on the Upper Tier. Gunther didn't look pleased, but was nodding at whatever Keiran was saying. Mihr was standing nearby, but he was looking down at Daunte. Daunte gave him a slight nod before focusing back on Lanny. "Hey," he said.

Lanny said nothing, continuing to look down the mineshaft. Daunte followed his gaze and saw children still walking up the length of the shaft. "How are you?" Daunte asked him.

"Today is my birthday," Lanny said grimly.

"Oh, really?" Daunte asked, looking at him. "Well…Happy fourteenth birthday."

Lanny quickly looked at him. "How did you know I turned fourteen?"

Daunte shrugged. "You shouted your age during the fight at Uaminifu."

"…Oh." Lanny slowly looked away and back down the mineshaft.

"I'm sorry you're celebrating your birthday this way," Daunte said. "But for what it's worth, I'm glad you guys are here."

"I saw a girl not too long ago," Lanny said. "She said she was fourteen too. But she was so…she didn't look fourteen! Daunte—I-I mean, Lord Daunte—she looked like she was _twelve_! She was so thin and looked so weak, and…" he ducked his head. "I-I'd heard stories; you know? That this place was a terrible place. But I'd thought that it didn't matter, you know? I thought that you deserved what happened to you because you had betrayed Nagar. B-But this…" he gestured with his hand at the children below them. "T-These kids are my age! They're _younger_ than me! I've seen soldiers dying on the battlefield that look better than this! I…"

Lanny looked at Daunte, and Daunte was stunned at the sorrow he saw there. "I-I didn't know. You have to believe me when I say I didn't know! I would never wish _this_ upon anyone! But that time—when you were our prisoner. I said so many horrible things to you, yet you survived _this_! I said those stupid, awful things and I—" he was becoming slightly hysterical. "I-I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! If I had known better, I…" he covered his mouth with a hand.

"If you had known better it wouldn't have made a difference," Daunte told him. "I don't blame you for what you said or felt. I'm just glad you were here to help us to liberate these children."

"I can't take credit for helping when you guys have been suffering this long." Lanny dropped his hand and did breathing exercises to calm himself. "I…I was going to join you because S—Keiran pledged himself to you. But I-I wanted to ask you in permission. Is it all right for me to join the Liberation Army?"

"Absolutely."

Lanny nodded and smiled for the first time. "Thank you, my Lord. I will work very hard to prove myself essential to the Army!" he stood up. "What shall I do?"

"For now, help us with the evacuation," Daunte said, standing up as well. "Help us get the children out of here safely."

"Right!" Lanny immediately set off spoke to Allise. Allise pointed down the line and Lanny raced to follow her direction. Daunte watched him go and then looked up towards Keiran. The former Sheikh was no longer speaking to Gunther. No, now he was looking straight down at Daunte, having undoubtedly witnessed Daunte speaking to Lanny. Finally, the older man nodded to Daunte and smiled. Daunte grinned and nodded back to him.

"My Lord!"

Several people jumped as a Liberation Army soldier suddenly appeared at the top of the Dark Chasm. "Lord Daunte! Sheikh Nuori is on the march towards this location!"

"I see that it wasn't an idle threat," Daunte heard Priscilla mutter.

"Then we'll have to engage her," Keiran said, nodding to Mihr. "I certainly have a few choice words for her."

"W-Wait!" Daunte shouted. He ran all the way up to the Upper Tier. "Our priority is getting the children out of here! If we engage them in combat, then we risk severe losses!"

"If Tamara Nuori is bringing her soldiers here, then we might have no choice but to engage her," Gunther pointed out.

"My Lord," Caesar said, moving to stand beside Daunte. "Since you want to avoid bloodshed, I imagine you have something else in mind?"

"Yes." Daunte yanked out the Blinking Mirror and held it up. "Viki gave this to me before we left. Once I activate this mirror, it will instantly teleport us all back to our headquarters."

"Oh, the Blinking Mirror!" Caesar exclaimed, grabbing Daunte's wrist. "I remember this! This was used frequently during the Second Fire Bringer War!"

"Really?"

"When you account for the children of the Dark Chasm, the soldiers you brought, and the soldiers _I_ brought, that's over a thousand people," Keiran pointed out. "Is this Blinking Mirror powerful enough to teleport us all?"

Daunte honestly didn't know the answer to that question but he did not want to show uncertainty in front of everyone and nodded. "We'll give it a try. In order to increase the accuracy of the teleportation however, we should all link hands and hang on tight. Tell everyone to line up and hang on. I'll go up top, tell everyone else up there to do the same, and then activate the mirror. Spread the word that in the event that anyone is left behind, they should evacuate through the ruins and return to headquarters on foot. There should still be markers down there to guide the way."

"Sounds like a plan," Gunther said, nodding. "I'll go tell everyone." He quickly ran down the line.

"Caesar come with me," Daunte said, grabbing Arin by the hand. "Spread the word quickly and have everyone link hands!"

"Yes, my Lord," Caesar said.

Daunte hung on tight to Arin's hand as they climbed out of the Dark Chasm. All around them soldiers were armed and ready to fight, but children were sitting on the ground clearly scared. Sixteen meters away, Daunte saw a massive force riding towards them and he swallowed thickly. That was undoubtedly Sheikh Nuori and her army units.

"Everyone, hang on and do not let go!" Caesar was shouting. "If you are left behind, get down to Tier Seven and climbed down through the ruins! There are still markers inside the ruins that will guide you out!" All around them people were grabbing onto each other. Daunte clutched the Blinking Mirror to his chest as we he waited. Finally, Caesar grabbed the back of his vest. "We're ready, my Lord. Please use the Blinking Rune now!"

"Liberation Army!" Daunte heard Sheikh Nuori shout to them. "This is where you are defeated once and for all!"

Daunte thrusted the Blinking Mirror high into the air. "T…Take us back to headquarters!" he shouted.

The Blinking Rune suddenly let off a bright white glow that consumed the area. Daunte squeezed his eyes shut but also squeezed Arin's hand. _Please…Please let this work!_

"Oh my goodness!"

Daunte's eyes snapped open. He was face-to-face with a large dark mirror. A moment later he realized that he was no longer outside.

"Welcome back!" Viki greeted him cheerfully.

Daunte quickly turned around. They were no longer at the Dark Chasm. They were in the main hall of their headquarters. And because of the sheer number of people who had been teleported, they were all practically on top of each other!

"Well," Caesar said, letting go of Daunte's vest. "That worked out exactly how I expected it to."

* * *

"How could you keep this from us?!"

Daunte heard the shouting before he entered the war room. He'd taken on the responsibility to do a head count to make sure that no one had been left behind. To his immense relief, nobody _had_ been left behind. All of the soldiers and the children of the Dark Chasm were accounted for.

Clara had been overwhelmed by meeting Dr. Yulin, as he was a doctor she idolized. But as Felicity predicted, she was appalled by Dr. Yulin physical appearance and promptly ordered him to go to bed. With the threat of tying him to his bed, of course.

The Army set about getting the children of the Dark Chasm settled. Water and Wind Runes were used to heal them and they were given food, but Daunte noticed something that made him uncomfortable. The Liberation Army had immediately leapt at the opportunity to help the children, but…but the soldiers, Tidur, Clara—everyone seemed overwhelmed by the sheer number of children to take care of.

 _We'll work it out. I know we will_.

Daunte went up to the war room for the debrief when he heard Gunther shouting just outside the door.

"Lord Caesar, you went and made an alliance with Keiran Umed without consulting us! Without notifying our _commander_! How could you act behind our backs?!"

"I acted in the better interests of the Army. I received word about Keiran's excommunication and extradition and I felt I needed to move fast to secure him as an ally. I—"

"But you didn't discuss this with any of us!" Allise argued. "You didn't even discuss it with Lord Daunte! You just _surprised_ him with it in the middle of battle! Did you think we would find this "cute", or something?! Because it was completely unprofessional of you to do this on your own!"

"Please, don't be angry," Caesar tried to reassure them. "My actions were no different than many other strategists of major wars. The important thing is that we secured the alliance—"

"The _important_ thing is that you deliberately withheld battle plans from our Lord Commander!" Eamon interjected. "You place him right in the middle of enemy territory and made him and all of us believe that he did not have a lifeline! That is unforgiveable!"

Daunte hesitated behind the door. Admittedly he _was_ upset that Caesar had hidden the alliance with Keiran from him, and had essentially left him thinking that they had lost. He knew he could go in there and agree with everyone against Caesar, or to defend his strategist from their verbal attacks.

Deep down, he knew he had to do what was best for the Army. So Daunte took a deep breath, let it out slowly, and pushed open the door. "Everyone, stop it."

Everyone snapped to attention as Daunte entered. "Lord Daunte, "Gunther said, hurrying over to him. "We were defending you. As our Lord you should have been informed about this alliance and Caesar deliberately refrained from telling you!"

"Everyone," Daunte said, keeping his voice calm. "Do not reprimand our Army strategist. I won't allow you to question his judgment. He had a plan, and the plan was a success. That is what is most important."

"But my Lord—" Eamon said.

"Your concern is appreciated and I thank you for it. But I can't stand while you second-guess the decisions of our strategist. You must have faith that what he is doing is for the good of this Army. I believe in him, and so should you."

Caesar actually looked surprised to see Daunte defending him so staunchly. All throughout the room, Daunte's supporters slowly relaxed. But very slowly.

"I apologize, Lord Caesar," Allise said softly. Everyone else followed up with apologies as well, and Caesar answered them with a nod.

Daunte folded his arms over his chest. "Everyone is secure here. Let's commence with the debriefing."

The debriefing thankfully was quick, as it only confirmed everything Daunte already knew. All of the children were here, and Keiran was now an ally. Less than a half hour later, the war room emptied as everyone scattered to do their own thing within headquarters.

Daunte, however, deliberately hung back and gave Caesar a pointed look to do the same. Thankfully, the strategist understood completely.

"I wanted to thank you for defending me earlier," Caesar said, turning to face him. "I can tell that you're not pleased with my decision, but I'm glad you displayed your professionalism in front of the men and women under your command."

"You said it once," Daunte said. "That as commander and strategist we have to look united no matter how bad things look."

Caesar smiled sheepishly. "Indeed I did."

Daunte moved to stand in front of him. "I'm grateful that you secured this alliance for me, but I don't want you hiding anything from me again, Caesar. If you have an idea about obtaining allies, or ambushes, or anything else, I want you to tell me. If you keep your plans hidden from me then it looks like to the rest of the Army that you don't trust me." Daunte hesitated before continuing. "Do you trust me?"

"Yes, I do," Caesar told him. "Far more than I trust Bearyl Lutis."

"Then I'll let this slide," Daunte said. "Because of the amount of good it has done for the Army. But don't hide anything from me again. Understand?"

Caesar nodded. "Absolutely. From now on you'll be the very first person who hears about any ideas I have."

Daunte nodded. "Thank you." The words were said around a yawn. "We worked hard today. Can you make arrangements to bring the soldiers up for a meeting? I want to thank them for how hard they worked today."

"That's awfully nice of you, my Lord."

Daunte shrugged. "They worked hard. They should be recognized for it. Should I do anything else for them? Like…do we have the budget to give them raises?"

"…Not quite yet," Caesar said. "But you'd be surprised how much good a simple 'good job' from their lord commander can do for morale."

* * *

Later, Daunte collapsed onto his bed. He'd felt awkward that he couldn't reward anyone for their hard work outside of telling them that they did a good job and that he was proud of them but Caesar was right—his words _did_ make an impression. By the end of his speech, where he gave his sincerest thanks to the soldiers—everyone was cheering and clapping. There wasn't one person who _wasn't_ smiling.

Daunte rolled onto his back and stared at the ceiling. Everything still felt surreal. He couldn't believe that he had led a successful campaign and had liberated the Dark Chasm. He felt like he was dreaming—that he would wake up and find himself still a prisoner of that horrible place.

 _It's amazing that we saved so many kids, but…but this feels so bittersweet._ Daunte pressed his forearm against his eyes. _I-I just can't help but think that I could've done more for them. That we could've liberated the Dark Chasm sooner. I mean, I have far less soldiers under my command than Bearyl Lutis did, and we were successful! I just can't help but wonder…how many more children we could've saved if we'd gotten there sooner._

Daunte knew that he should've been proud of the work he did, but…but then he remembered how many children had died there—including Kass—and he frowned deeply as tears slid down his cheeks.

He wasn't aware of falling asleep. So he was startled when he felt a dip in his bed, and he felt a presence directly over him. Daunte blinked with confusion against the darkness of his room, and found himself face-to-face with striking ruby eyes.

"You have such a peaceful expression when you sleep," Sierra told him. She was kneeling directly over Daunte's body in bed, her nose barely a centimeter from his. "I've been wondering…"

"…Wondering what?" Daunte asked her.

"What your blood tastes like."

Daunte's eyes went wide. But before he could respond (either with words or with screams), a shadow fell over Sierra and arms wrapped around her waist and she was lifted off the bed and off of Daunte.

"Now, now, as a married woman you're not allowed to get into bed with another man," Nash admonished her, though his tone was playful.

Sierra scoffed and gave a toss of her head. "Jealousy is not a very mature reaction."

"Really, old gi—OOF!" Nash grunted as Sierra suddenly grabbed his arm and twisted it behind his back.

Daunte quickly sat up and shoved back the covers. He lit a candle at his bedside. "What are you two doing here?"

"O-Oh, it's very simple," Nash said as Sierra let him go. "We had heard that your Army finally wised up and got rid of Bearyl Lutis. Then we heard that _you_ were appointed leader, and well…" Nash chuckled lightly. "I knew we had to come and see you."

"So now you're here," Daunte said, looking between them. "What do you want?"

"We want to join you."

Daunte stiffened, and his eyes narrowed. "Are you joining to spy on me for your home country?"

"I can't tell you that," Nash responded cheekily.

"What he means," Sierra said. "Is that he's interested in your Rune and wants to stay by you to keep an eye on your Rune." She looked at Nash. "There. Was that so hard?"

"Why should I allow you both to join?" Daunte asked. "Especially if _you're_ only joining to keep tabs on my Rune?" he pointed to Nash.

"Well, Sierra here has a True Rune too," Nash said. "Not to mention the fact that we're both very skill in combat. We'll both work very hard for you to ensure that you succeed. Plus." Nash's grin broadened even more. "I can't share with you details about my job, but I'll still do some information gathering on your behalf. And since you know I'm a spy for Harmonia, you would know it's not in my best interests to align with the Nagarist Theocracy so I won't betray you. So, what do you say?" Nash held out his hand. "Will you accept us?"

Daunte was apprehensive about having them both there—especially since they snuck into his room—but he also knew that both of them had helped him before. Plus, Nash was being pretty honest about himself and his intentions. Maybe it was risky, but…

Daunte finally nodded, and accepted his hand. "Welcome aboard."

"Good!" Nash exclaimed. He grinned at Sierra. "Didn't I tell you I could get us in?"

"I never doubted you for a second," Sierra said dryly. She examined her fingernails as though she were bored. "Can we go and eat now?"

"Y-You're hungry now?" Daunte asked them.

"We traveled a long way," Nash explained. He took Sierra by the arm. "If you'll excuse us, my Lord…"

Daunte was left standing there even after they casually walked out of his room. After a moment he turned and blew out the candle. Then he looked towards the ceiling. "Did you get a lot of weirdos for your recruits, Mom?"


	32. Chapter Four: Part Three

Part Three

Daunte knocked on the door and waited for Oboro call him inside. When he entered the office Shou immediately stood up and snapped to attention, but Oboro gave Daunte a wave from where he was sitting on the couch. "Ah, Lord Daunte! Come in and have a seat!"

Daunte took a seat on the couch across from Oboro. "How have things been, my Lord?"

"The scouts we sent up the underground cavern returned early this morning," Daunte said. "The cavern apparently stretches up throughout the entire northwest of Nagarea to the Northern Wharf."

"Well, _that_ will certainly reduce your travel time," Oboro said. "That is, when you're not relying on Viki to teleport you." He folded his hands over one knee. "How about Varnaz? Has he returned, or did you want us to go and find him?"

Daunte shook his head. "We've not heard back from Varnaz yet, but Caesar isn't concerned about it so I won't be."

"I see. This is all good to hear. But I sense you didn't come here just to give me updates. How can I help you, my Lord?"

"I wanted to check with you and see if you've had any more sightings about possible recruits for the Liberation Army," Daunte told him.

"More recruits?" Shou asked from his position along the wall. "What about all those kids you brought back?"

"They're not recruits," Daunte told him. "They're rehabilitating."

Shou shrugged. "All right."

"As usual, I'm always happy to help." Oboro got up from the couch and walked over to his desk to retrieve paperwork. "You were kind enough to pay us to scout around, and I'm pleased to say that I have results for you."

Daunte grinned and nodded enthusiastically. "Thank you for your hard work."

"Now, now. Wait until I present my results before thanking me." Oboro sat back down on the couch. He flipped over a couple of page. "All right. I've received recommendations for you to return to Uaminifu."

Daunte nodded. "The city is on our side so I'll be happy to return there."

Oboro turned over another page. "Also, there was some positive feedback regarding Peak's Edge—"

"Peak's Edge?" Daunte burst out. He stood up. "A-Are the _Wingers_ looking for an alliance with us?"

"That, I do not know," Oboro admitted. "However it has been suggested that you go there."

"Right." Daunte sat back down. "Anything else?"

"Yes. I've received word that you should return to the Dark Chasm."

Daunte stiffened. "They didn't reopen it, did they?"

"No, it's been abandoned. Besides, it would be nigh impossible for them to reopen it considering our Army took the time to destroy all the mining equipment there. Not to mention the fact that I'm fairly sure you would simply liberate it again, my Lord."

"Of course I would."

"Well, my report suggested you might find something or someone useful there. It also suggested that you bring the dragon girl and her dragon with you."

"Sharon and Suna?" Daunte asked. "Does your report say why?"

Oboro shrugged. "I'm afraid not. But I hope this will be helpful for you. Will you be sending out groups to recruit people?"

Daunte shook his head. "I'll be going out to do the recruiting myself."

"Why?" Shou asked. "You're our leader now. Don't you have a lot on your plate already?"

"It's actually pretty ingenious," Oboro said. "Having our Lord Commander personally go out to round up recruits for the Army. When I served the Loyalist Army during the Falenan Civil War, Prince Freyjadour went out and personally recruited almost every one of the members of the Army. It demonstrates a degree of deep dedication that one leader would have for an Army."

Shou shrugged. "Well, to me it looks like a desperate move to send our leader out to personally recruit people."

"You're not far off, we _are_ desperate for more recruits," Daunte said, looking at Shou over his shoulder. "I have no problem meeting with people personally to recruit them. Anything that will ensure our victory."

Shou relaxed a little. "Well, it's your decision."

"That is all I have for now," Oboro said, setting his paperwork on the coffee table between them. "Was there anything else you needed, Lord Daunte?"

Daunte thought about it and turned around. "Would you mind running some more investigations on my soldiers?"

"Certainly."

* * *

Daunte hadn't seen much of Nash and Sierra since they basically ambushed him in his bedroom, but he did hear that the couple had taken up residence in the underground cavern.

 _Well, Sharon and Suna have company now,_ Daunte thought dryly

Before going up to see Caesar and assembling his party for his recruiting quest, Daunte visited the children of the Dark Chasm. Within the compound walls and even outside, the children were living in tents and slowly recuperating. Daunte watched them with a heavy heart. Even while liberated so many of the over three hundred children were too weak to do little else but sit down and stare off into space. Most were scarfing down food so quickly that it was making them ill. He was also aware that despite their freedom many of the children frequently experienced night terrors. There was hardly a night where one or _ten_ children woke up screaming.

Even though he had freed them, it still felt like to Daunte that he wasn't doing enough for them. That's why whenever he checked up on them he was surprised to see the children suddenly energized when they saw him, and they gathered up their strength to stand up and greet him, or to salute him.

"Look, Daunte! I got a sunburn! I've _never_ gotten a sunburn before!"

"I heard some of the others complaining about having to sleep in tents. _I_ don't care! I'd rather sleep on the cold ground outside than go back to the Dark Chasm!"

"I was thinking of putting on a uniform and joining the Army, but I'm just so exhausted all the time! Even after I get a full night's sleep!"

Daunte ventured outside the headquarters and visited as many children as he could who were resting in tents lining the cliffside. As he walked along greeting the children and asking if they were okay, something caught his eye. He saw a boy roughly sixteen or seventeen years old wearing a tan-colored tunic with a black vest and black pants, taking practice swings with a Khopesh. His wine-colored hair was short and messy and his dark eyes were tired, but he had a look of determination as he continued practice swings.

But Daunte was stunned to see him. So much so that it took him a moment to react and walk over to the boy. "L…Lysander?"

"Huh?" Lysander quickly turned and his face brightened when he saw Daunte. "Hey, Daunte! Long time no see!"

"I-I can't believe it," Daunte said with disbelief. "I had no idea you survived! I'm sorry I didn't come looking for you sooner!"

Lysander shrugged. "To be honest, this is the best I've felt in days. I mean I can actually f-f-f-f-…" his voice began stuttering slightly and he stopped briefly and pressed a hand over his heart. For a brief moment he looked distressed before he recovered again and forced a smile. "Sorry. I haven't talked in a long time, so I have to force the words to form."

"No, it's okay. But seriously, I'm so sorry I didn't look for you in the Dark Chasm!"

"Like I said, I hadn't said a word in almost two years and…" Lysander had to pause again and he cleared his throat. "I wasn't in good shape. T-They had to carry me out of there. But I'm better now."

Daunte gestured to the Khopesh he held. "Where did you get that?"

"Oh, there's plenty of unused weapons in your armory. I asked if I could have it and they said yes." Lysander took another practice swing and smiled. "I'm ready."

"Ready?"

Lysander squared his shoulders. "I want to join the Liberation Army."

"H-Hold on a second. You're still recuperating from the Dark Chasm. You don't have any obligation to join the Army. None of you do. I don't want you to feel like I'm pressuring you into joining."

Lysander shrugged. "You're not pressuring me. I'm joining because I want to."

"Ly—"

"Do you know why I was sentenced to the Dark Chasm?"

Daunte stilled. "…Why?"

"Because my aunt was caught picking her nose during the Morning Prayer in the Grand Citadel."

Daunte gaped at him. The word 'what' formed on his lips but he couldn't even speak it.

"They said she defiled the sanctity of the Morning Prayer, in the most holy of Chapels," Lysander said. His tone suddenly turned bitter. "And so because of that, they put my family to death. My parents, my two sisters, everyone. I-I-It—" rage has risen to his gaunt face, making his expression more unsettling.

"I heard," Lysander continued softly. "That the High Clerics aren't even real High Clerics. That they're r-r-r-r-r-really assassins. If it weren't for them, none of those w-would've happened to me. I want to f-fight, Daunte. In the Dark Chasm—the things they did, I…" he quickly shook his head, his expression filling with sorrow. "They crushed me, Daunte. They crushed my s-spirit so badly that I couldn't speak. Even now it's hard for me to talk. They ruined my life, Daunte. I want vengeance. I want to make them suffer the way they've made _me_ suffer."

Daunte looked at him for a long moment, and then he looked at the children around them. Everyone was watching in silence. Lysander didn't look that much better than those who were too weak to stand, but he was standing and he was ready to fight.

 _I was in the same position as him not too long ago. How can I possibly say no?_

Daunte turned to look at him. "Build your strength up Lysander, and I'll be happy to have you join the fight."

"Thank you so _much_!" Lysander threw his arms around Daunte, but Daunte shoved at his right arm to keep the Khopesh away from him. But Lysander was too happy to care. "I'll go report to your strategist right now!" he hurried off.

Daunte finished checking on the children, who also wanted to join the Army, but Daunte had to refuse them. They still needed to recuperate. Strangely despite hearing rumors about complaints, nobody brought any complaints to him. He didn't know if they were true or just rumors.

He made his way back to the main building of the headquarters, and upon entering he heard Clara speaking sternly. Daunte took a moment to peek into the infirmary to see why she was angry.

"—really all right," Dr. Yulin insisted. "I've had plenty of rest, and—"

"Just be quiet and get back into bed!" Clara snapped at him. "You're still swaying on your feet! That indicates to me that you're not fully recovered!"

Daunte snorted and left her to it. He climbed the stairs and nodded to Viki as he passed her. "Good morning."

"Good morning!" Viki greeted him. "I have good news! Since you liberated the Dark Chasm, soldiers have retreated from cities all across Nagarea! I should be able to safely teleport you to any city that you have already visited!"

 _This_ surprised Daunte. He would've thought that since they liberated the largest (and only) prison camp in Nagarea that the Theocracy would've tightened security. But they _loosened_ it?

 _They must have called most of the soldiers back to Mlkwt Alsmwat to add security to the capital just in case I decided to march on the capital like Bearyl did. Except I'm not going to do that. Not yet, at least._

Daunte started the climb up six stories, checking on each of his allies on each floor. En route he noticed a lone set of double doors that opened up to an empty shaft. It reminded him of the elevator in Sheikh Keha Hale's Garrison (to which Allise confirmed it was), and Daunte made a mental note to find someone who could build him a proper elevator.

He stopped a little longer on the third floor. Gunther and Eamon had claimed rooms on this room of course, but now the third floor had new residents.

"Ah, Lord Daunte." Keiran Umed stood to attention from his desk as Daunte entered. It felt awkward to Daunte to have a former Sheikh defer to him, but Keiran didn't seem to mind in the slightest being subservient to a teenager with no military background. "How can I help you?"

"You've all been here for over a week," Daunte said. He looked at Mihr, who was sitting on a couch cleaning his sword. "How have things been for you all?"

"I can't complain," Keiran said, smiling. Indeed, Keiran and Mihr had been quick to choose a room within the main building. Daunte was puzzled as to why they chose to share a room and take the time to fit two beds on opposite sides of the room, when there were still empty rooms throughout the building. But Keiran insisted, stating they didn't want to take up too much space. He _did_ request however that Lanny have a room on the third floor, also fitted with an extra bed so someone else could move in and share the space. "Really, the most difficult thing about leaving my Garrison was that some of the men and women who served under me turned on me. But that was only two dozen soldiers, really—the rest defected along with me and we are ready to serve."

"I can't believe that they chose to follow that bastard Ramiro Lažov," Mihr said from the couch. He held up his sword and examined it closely. "The northeastern provinces are going to fall to ruin under that man's command."

"…I heard about that," Daunte said, looking back at Keiran. "That Lažov was promoted to Sheikh in your place." He didn't know yet if Varnaz knew about his former brother-in-law's ascension since Varnaz had still not returned, but he knew it would only be an incentive for the Lieutenant General to fight harder to overthrow the Theocracy.

"It's fine," Keiran said. "Well, it's _not_ fine because I worked hard to bring stability to my provinces and I don't trust Ramiro Lažov to maintain that stability. But I look forward to liberating them, and liberating this country." He nodded. "You can trust us to ensure your victory."

"Have you had any problems since you arrived?" Daunte asked.

"None," Keiran said, but Daunte said Mihr shift out of the corner of his eye. Keiran continued. "There's nothing to worry about. We waltzed into this Army after being your enemy for so long, and after we killed many of your soldiers. We have to prove ourselves to the people here, and that's what we'll do. You can count on us."

Daunte nodded. "Thank you."

He checked on Lanny, who was counting off pushups, and decided not to disturb him. Especially when the younger boy called out, "Five hundred and thirty-two!"

On the fifth floor outside the war room, Reis was studying the writing on the wall next to the door. Farzin was out on the balcony, and it looked like the ex-Cleric was in deep meditation. Daunte entered the war room, and found it was empty except for Caesar. The Army strategist immediately stood up from the table as he entered. "Good morning, Lord Daunte. Are you ready to go for your quest?"

Daunte nodded. "Viki said that soldiers have withdrawn from many of the cities so it should be safe for her to teleport me."

"Excellent! That will reduce your travel time considerably!" Caesar rubbed his hands together. "Allow me to assemble your party. Who would you like to bring with you?"

Daunte remembered Oboro's suggestion. "Sharon and Suna."

"All right. Anyone else?"

For the remainder of his party, Daunte had to think about it. He finally settled on "Gunther, Allise, and Farzin."

"Good. I'll summon everyone." Caesar summoned a scout and instructed them to get the people together for Daunte's party. The scout quickly left.

It would be the first time Daunte ventured out on a quest without Roen or Felicity. It felt strange not having his two best friends with him, but after visiting them in their rooms he knew they needed the break. Roen was still asleep when Daunte checked in on him, and while Felicity was awake she looked lethargic. She'd been working overtime to take care of the children of the Dark Chasm, and it didn't sit well with Daunte to drag them on a recruiting quest.

 _Well I won't be gone for long. And the people I'm bringing with me are competent and I trust them._

The scout returned less than five minutes later with Daunte's party. Gunther was positively grinning. "Thank you, my Lord."

"I think you ask too much of me," Allise said, but her tone was soft and playful.

"Suna has been restless for the last few days," Sharon said, hugging her dragon. "Ever since you guys came back from the Dark Chasm."

"I'm happy to serve," Farzin said, though his tone was bland.

"All right, you're set," Caesar said. "Be careful, my Lord."

Daunte nodded. "Thank you."

The group headed back down to the first floor, and Viki waved to them. "I'm ready whenever you are! Where would you like to go?"

Daunte reached her. "Can we teleport straight to the Dark Chasm, or can you only take us as far as K'alak'i Patieba?"

" _Why_ would we want to go back there?" Farzin asked.

Viki nodded. "T-There is a marker there, so I can teleport you there." She gestured for them to come closer. "Now everything, clear your mi—A-AH!" she shouted, clutching at her face. Daunte rushed forward and plugged her nose as everyone else stumbled away from her. A few moments passed, and Viki finally relaxed. She did not sneeze. "Thank you, Lord Daunte."

"Anytime," Daunte said dryly, releasing her.

Viki beamed at them. "Now then! I'll send you all where you need to go!"

* * *

Thankfully there were no mishaps and Viki successfully teleported them to the Dark Chasm. There were five Liberation Army scouts in the area, and they immediately saluted when Daunte and his party arrived. "The Theocracy has not returned," one reported. "The mineshaft remains abandoned."

"As it should," Allise muttered.

"Just to warn you all though, we've broken all the equipment," the scouts continued. "That includes the lift. We wanted to ensure that this place could never be used for any purpose again."

Daunte nodded to him. "Good job." Again, he was surprised when he saw how pleased the scout was by his praise.

"S-Suna?!" Sharon suddenly shouted. Daunte turned and saw the golden dragon was struggling in its mistress's arms. Suna then broke free and suddenly rose high into the air. "W-Where are you doing?!" Sharon jumped and tried to grab for Suna, but the dragon rose too high. Then suddenly, Suna was flying straight down the Dark Chasm's mineshaft. " _Suna!_ " Sharon took off running after the dragon.

Daunte quickly followed and ran straight down the Tiers in pursuit. He was struck by the utter silence of the Dark Chasm, except for Sharon's shouts. It wasn't too long before where the mineshaft had been filled with the sounds of screams, beatings, and children being worked to death. It was still unreal to him that the place had been liberated and had been abandoned.

 _And it's going to stay that way._

"Suna, you naughty dragon!" Sharon had reached the Lower Tier and was chastising her dragon. Suna however was sniffing at a pile of rocks and ignoring Sharon. "Don't ever scare me like that again!"

"Did Suna find something?" Daunte asked as they reached the Lower Tier.

Sharon shrugged. "How should I know? Su—"

Suna then nudged a large rock aside and Sharon shrieked, startling Daunte. "W-What?!" he shouted.

"Oh my goodness!" Sharon screamed, her voice echoing up the mineshaft. She ran over to the pile of rocks and pushed several rocks aside. "Is it re—IT IS!" she screamed even louder.

"What?" Daunte asked more calmly, but he stilled at what Sharon had uncovered. She heaved up a large round rock that was dark blue, almost black. Sharon was cradling the rock in her arms as though she were holding a baby, and caressed the surface with a large degree of tenderness. She looked up, and Daunte was stunned to see that she was crying. "Do…Do you know what this is?"

Daunte shrugged stiffly. "I don't. What is it?"

"It's a _dragon's egg_!"

"W-What?!" Gunther shouted, pulling out his sword. Daunte's jaw dropped and he looked at the egg in question. "A-Are you serious?! We had a dragon's egg down here this _whole time_?!"

"The egg is warm! Even after being buried under rocks it's warm! D-Do you know what this means?" Sharon carefully set the egg down on the ground.

"What does it mean?" Allise asked.

"I-It means the baby will hatch very soon!"

"Then it needs to be taken care of," Gunther said harshly.

"Absolutely not!" Sharon said, throwing her body down over the egg. Suna took a protective stance in front of its mistress and growled slightly. "This is a baby! I'm a Dragon Knight, I know what I'm doing!"

"This is a dragon born out in the wild!" Gunther pointed out. "Not a dragon born in one of your caves surrounded by professional Knights! It might be born rabid!"

That was a real possibility, but Daunte quickly gestured to Gunther. "It's all right."

"But my Lord—"

"It's _all right_ ," Daunte said more sternly. "I trust Sharon's judgment."

Gunther stared at him for a long moment before slowly sheathing his sword.

Sharon smiled at Daunte from her kneeled position. "Thank you, Lord D—OH!" she cried out and quickly sat up. Suna turned around and began grunting at the egg.

The egg that was _moving_.

"Oh boy," Allise sighed, still on her guard.

After a few moments, the dark surface of the egg cracked violently. The crack then twitched, and pieces of egg flew everywhere as a small light blue dragon head. Daunte gaped as more and more of the tiny light blue body burst and crawled out from the egg until it was sagging into Sharon's lap. The tiny creature was panting heavily, and Suna kept sniffing at it, and it was a long moment before it raised its head. It blinked rapidly, revealing pale orange eyes, and stared straight at Sharon. The newborn dragon held Sharon's gaze for a long moment before it opened its mouth and let out a croaked squeal.

"O-Oh my goodness!" Allise gasped, pressing her hands to her mouth. "I never thought a baby dragon could be so _cute_!"

"It…appears harmless," Gunther said after a long moment.

"The creature seems to have quickly imprinted on the dragon girl," Farzin observed. "Hopefully she can take care of both of these dragons."

Sharon held the newborn dragon baby in her arms, and used a free hand to scrub the tears off her face before giving the baby a kiss. Suna continued sniffing at the newborn, and nearly knocked Sharon over. But she remained sitting as she stroked the baby's head. "I'm going to call you 'Azul'."

"Well, that makes sense," Allise said. "Azul _is_ a shade of blue."

Sharon looked up at Daunte. "Thank you so much for bringing me here. If we had gotten here any later, Azul would've been born and without a mother or Dragon Knight it would've died or gone mad. But we made it here in time." She laughed a little. "Mom won't be so mad at me now when I bring home a new dragon."

Daunte smiled. "Let's go back to headquarters so you can get Azul settled."

"Yes, let's."

* * *

Not everybody was immediately on board with having a newborn dragon on the premises, but nobody could deny that Azul really _was_ adorable. Suna quickly took on role as an older sibling, and they played with each other in their home in the underground cave.

"Well, that was fun," Gunther said blandly. With Sharon and Suna gone to take care of Azul, that left them short two party members. "Where to next?"

"Uaminifu," Daunte said. "This time we'll be gone longer because we'll be going to the High Peak Mountains afterwards."

"Hmm," Allise said. "Are you trying to strike an alliance with the Wingers?"

Daunte shrugged. "I don't know what I'll find there."

They seemed to accept this and went back up to see Caesar to replace Sharon and Suna. Once again however, Daunte did not know who he should bring with them.

Gunther was all too eager to volunteer.

"Priscilla and Desiree!"

"Oh Nagar," Allise groaned, rubbing at her face.

"Well, Priscilla said she had a 'headache' and wasn't up for traveling at the moment," Caesar said. "Or at least that's what the scout said earlier. But Desiree is available."

Gunther perked up at that and Daunte thought about the final person and shrugged. "Lanny?"

Thankfully, the young swordsman was too enthusiastic to volunteer. As was Desiree.

"Y-You're going out on a mission dressed like _that_?!" Lanny demanded, gesturing to Desiree's outfit. Unlike the war campaign when she was in armor, Desiree was still dressed in her revealing dance outfit.

"Hey, whatever works," Gunther laughed.

Desiree smiled and spun around in a circle before striking a pose. "What's wrong with my outfit?"

"'What's wrong with your outfit'?" Lanny echoed incredulously. " _Everyone_ can see what's wrong with your outfit!"

"Can you elaborate for me?"

Lanny flushed, clearly not wanting to explain that her midriff was bare and her pants were so loose that they looked like they were about to fall off her hips. Lanny suddenly glared at Daunte, obviously not pleased with these arrangements.

"Ah, so, let's go," Daunte said.

* * *

Uaminifu was a much more settled city when Daunte returned. Everyone seemed to be high alert, but the moment the guards saw him they ushered him inside the city. They did not check his identification book or ask him religious questions. But there wasn't a strong military presence. Business seemed to be going on as usual.

 _Is…Is the Theocracy just going to_ _ **pretend**_ _they didn't try to massacre everyone here?!_

The mood was not as jovial as it was when Daunte first came to the city, but citizens recognized him and approached him for thanks. It made navigating the city difficult, but he narrowed in on the Rune shop in the market district and hurried inside.

"Ahhh, our savior has returned!"

And Jeane was behind the counter as usual. Gunther's jaw dropped and his eyes went wide when he saw the beautiful Runemistress. Lanny however quickly blushed and looked away. Jeane came out from behind the counter, showing off her revealing outfit, and Lanny's head turned further away and his face turned darker red.

" _Thank you_ ," Gunther mouthed to Daunte, which earned him a jab in the gut from Allise's elbow.

"Thank you so much for what you did for us," Jeane said. She gave Daunte a kiss on each cheek, and Daunte got a whiffed of her perfume. It was strangely ethereal, which unsettled him. "How can I help you today?"

Daunte shook his head to clear it. "Would you like to join the Liberation Army?"

"Yes," Jeane responded without hesitation.

"Wow, just like that?" Desiree asked.

Jeane shrugged gracefully. "Why not? I'm naturally drawn to young men on the verge of manhood."

"Um…thanks?" Daunte said.

"So you'll set up a rune shop at our headquarters?" Allise asked.

Jeane laughed softly and gave a toss of her head. "There is no better Runemistress than I."

"In that case, I would like to see you about something once we get back."

Daunte glanced at her, but Allise's expression was hard. Even Gunther look concerned for Allise. Jeane merely nodded her understanding and turned around. "Of course. I just need to get my inventory in order and find someone to watch my shop, and then I'll be on merry way." She winked at Daunte over her shoulder. "I'll see you later, my Lord."

The group was left standing there as she ventured into a back room. Gunther then cheered and slung an arm around Daunte's shoulders. "Thank you so _much_ for recruiting so many hot women!"

"Let's go," Allise said curtly, quickly heading for the door.

Lanny finally uncovered his eyes. "Don't women get cold from wearing so little?" Desiree laughed loudly at that.

Daunte didn't know what else to look for in Uaminifu, but since he hadn't seen much of the city before he decided to still explore it. He made a mental note of where the inn was and continued to wander around and listen carefully to gossip around them.

"—told you to leave! Your presence is driving away my customers!"

Daunte heard this shout to his right and looked. He stiffened when he recognized the figure in shabby clothes and a hood pulled over his face towering over a man wearing a chef's apron. They were in front of a restaurant, and the chef was clearly throwing the other man out.

"I don't mean to be trouble," La'Ahad said softly. "I was just looking for a hot meal."

"And do you have the bits to pay for a hot meal? Since you can't even afford new clothes or to _bathe_ , I can't imagine so! Now move on!" the chef shoved at La'Ahad's arm.

"W-Wait!" Daunte shouted, surging forward. He yanked out his wallet as he ran over. "How much is your most expensive meal? I'll pay for it!"

The chef's eyes went wide when he saw Daunte. "O-Oh, my Lord!" he did a full kowtow before Daunte. "Please forgive me! I had no idea that this gentleman was one of your soldiers!"

La'Ahad _wasn't_ one of his soldiers and Daunte knew he could correct the man. But he didn't know if La'Ahad would be denied a meal if Daunte told the truth, so Daunte held his tongue and held out his money. "Don't worry about it. Just tell me the price of your heartiest meal and I will pay for it."

"I-I, uh…" the man was completely flustered as he frantically stood up, brushing the dirt off his apron. "Well, the largest meal I serve here is _Chankonabe_. It can serve up to five people. I charge 1,500 bits for it."

"Deal," Daunte said, counting out 1,500 bits. "Please prepare Chankonabe for my friend."

"O-Of course! I'll even give him the best seat in the restaurant! Come right this way, sir!" the chef frantically ran back inside.

Daunte noticed that La'Ahad was staring at him and Daunte felt awkward by it. Mostly because he still could not see La'Ahad's face. "Your table is waiting for you, La'Ahad. Go on in."

"You remembered my name," La'Ahad said to him. "So you remember me, Daunte?"

Daunte shrugged. "Of course I do. You remembered my name, right?"

"You paid for my inn room in Baltas, and now you pay for my first hot meal in weeks here," La'Ahad said. "Why would you go to such lengths for someone you don't know?"

Daunte felt even more awkward by that piercing question. He didn't know how to answer. La'Ahad was someone who needed help, and Daunte was in a position to help him so he _wanted_ to help him. There had been too many times where there were people who could've helped him while he was stuck in the Dark Chasm and nobody did. No, the only help he got was from a foreign prince, a battered doctor, his even more battered friends, and his own two mangled hands.

Life was very different for him now, but that didn't mean he could just ignore when other people needed help.

"I help you because it's the right thing to do," Daunte said finally. "Now go and have your meal."

La'Ahad nodded to him. "I won't forget this. I promise."

He finally ventured inside the restaurant and Daunte let out the breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. He turned to face his companions but stilled when he saw the looks on their faces. "What?" he asked.

" _This_ is why you're the right leader for our Army," Gunther told him.

"I agree," Farzin said.

Daunte flushed, and shifted his feet. "Look, I did what any—"

"Aww, you guys are making him embarrassed!" Desiree teased. She raced over and linked her arm with Daunte's. "Are you going to recruit him?"

"Not unless he wants to join me," Daunte said. "Right now I won't bother him about it." he gestured with his arm. "We should keep moving. We've attracted a crowd."

Indeed, a crowd of around five hundred people had converged upon them. All of them had nothing but positive things to say to Daunte, so that was reassuring at least.

As they got closer to the mayor's residence, what had once been Eamon's home, a windowless building that had guards on duty caught Daunte's attention and he headed over towards it. When he got close enough he saw a sign on the building.

It was Uaminifu's prison.

"Oh, this is interesting," Gunther said, coming up beside Daunte.

"We're not going to recruit _criminals_ , are we?" Lanny demanded.

"Sweetheart we _are_ criminals," Desiree teased him.

"Well…yes, you're right," Farzin added.

"It wouldn't hurt to glance inside I suppose," Allise said, shrugging.

They approached the main door, and the guards snapped to attention. "Nothing to worry about, my Lord," one said. "We've got only one criminal locked up at the moment."

"What was his crime?" Allise asked.

"Gambling."

Gunther actually burst into laughter at this. Farzin sighed heavily and folded his arms over his chest. "Well, gambling _is_ a sin as according to the Nagarist Order. The High Clerics didn't twist that one up at all."

"Was he sentenced?" Daunte asked.

"Lord Eamon was merciful to him," the second guard said. "He told the prisoner that he could be set free if he paid off his gambling debt."

"How much is his gambling debt?"

"Um…5,000 bits, I believe."

Daunte nodded. "Thank you."

The guards let him inside. For such a large city, Uaminifu's prison was rather small. It was only two stories tall and Daunte only counted twenty cells total for both floors. Another guard came up to them. "Can I help you?"

"I would like to see your prisoner," Daunte said.

The guard nodded. "Right this way."

Since this was the only prisoner in the prison, it was easy to tell which cell had the prisoner. The guard guided Daunte and his group to the second floor, where Daunte could hear an older male voice singing a Nagarean hymn. Followed by a clanging sound that made the guard stiffen. "Don't tell me—!"

The guard raced forward and stood in front of a cell. "Yaman! Why do you have your dice back?! _How_ did you get your dice back?! I confiscated those yesterday!"

"Oh…the dice came back to me naturally," was the nonchalant response.

The guard grumbled under his breath and furiously fumbled for his keys. "This is the last straw! I'll see to it that your debt increases by 2,000 more bits!"

"Oh no, please don't!" Yaman called out in a dramatic voice. Wrinkled hands grabbed the cells bars and a man in his mid-fifties became visible to Daunte. His dark silver hair was in a long ponytail, though his eyebrows were black, and his pale green eyes were narrow. His tunic and pants were stark black. "Haven't you done enough to me?!" he began to cry, but it was in such an over the top and mocking manner that Daunte knew he was faking it.

"You're in prison for gambling!" the guard snapped. "When you continue to gamble _while_ in prison, you're not showing that you are repentant!"

"Well, what am I supposed to do?" Yaman whined. "I'm locked in this hellhole all day with nothing to do! I'm _bored_!"

Daunte quickly started developing a headache. He knew of bigger "hellholes" than this place. But since he was there he knew he may as well meet this man, so he approached the cell. "Good afternoon."

"Oh, it's you!" Yaman reached through the bars towards Daunte, but Gunther quickly yanked him back and Allise pulled out one of her tessen and pointed it at Yaman with a warning look. "Wait, wait!" Yaman said defensively, raising his hands defensively. "I mean you no harm! I swear if you get me out of here, I'll help you make millions of bits!"

"If you can make us money, how did you end up in there?" Lanny asked him.

But Yaman shook his head. "I swear—I'll do anything you ask if you let me out! I-I'll show you how to make a lot of money! O-Or I'll even swear off gambling forever! I swear to Nagar!"

The guard snorted. "Fat chance."

Daunte thought about this in silence for a long moment. Once the moment ended he reached for his wallet and began counting out his money. "Wait, what?" Lanny exclaimed. "You're going to _pay_ his debt?! Why?!"

"The gambler seems like an interesting guy," Allise said.

"Here, let me give you some money as well," Gunther said, reaching into his own pockets.

"You'll pay off his debt?" the guard asked. He motioned to them. "I-In that case, you should see the warden. He'll accept your payment."

"Oh thank you, _thank you_!" Yaman was positively gushing. "I won't forget this!"

"I keep hearing that a lot," Daunte said as they followed the guard.

"That's what happens when you're generous, Lord Daunte," Allise said amusedly.

* * *

The prison warden was surprised they were willing to pay off Yaman's debt, but did not object in any way.

"You saved us from a massacre," the man said with awe. "It would be wrong to deny you the opportunity to help that heathen."

 _We're all heathens,_ Daunte thought.

So Yamen was set free, to his utter delight, and was ready to help his saviors. Except…

"The Liberation Army?" Yaman went a little pale. He laughed shortly. "You're…You're with an Army. An Army against the Theocracy?"

"Hey we're not just some grunts," Gunther said, slapping Daunte on the shoulder. "This is our Lord Commander."

Yaman went a little paler. "A…Ah. A-And you were looking to recruit me?"

"Wait, we are?" Lanny asked. "I thought we were just bailing him out of prison!"

"Hey, you promised to make us money," Allise pointed out, grinning. "And we bailed you out of prison. You owe us."

"I don't condone gambling, but you _do_ in fact owe our Lord," Farzin said.

"I…see." Yaman forced a painful smile. "Um…well you see, I'm not the Army type. I'm an old and feeble man—"

"Who said you had to fight?" Gunther asked. "Unless you want to go back to your prison cell?"

"Oh, that is unfair!" Yaman fussed. He shook his head and suddenly grinned. "I've got it."

"Got what?" Desiree asked.

Yaman held up his three dice between his fingers. "Why night make this a wager? I'll play you at _Chinchirorin_. We'll each bet 5,000 bits. Whoever loses 5,000 first loses. If I lose, then I'll join your Army. If I win, you let me be on my way. Do we have a deal?"

Lanny made a face. "Huh?!"

Daunte nodded. "I'll accept your challenge."

"Wait, didn't you just spend 5,000 bits on this idiot?" Farzin demanded.

"Okay," Yaman said. He rolled out a mat and propped a bowl in the center of it. "This is how _Chinchirorin_ works: we throw the dice into this bowl and when you roll a double with the same number on two dice, the third die will be your score. Whoever has the highest score wins. If any of your dice fall out of the bowl, you automatically lose. However, you don't just win by high score. Getting triple on numbers two through six will result in an automatic win, and you win triple the amount your opponent bet. But!" Yaman looked up. "If you roll three ones, then you automatically lose and pay _triple_ what your opponent bet. In addition, if your dice form one, two, three, it is an automatic loss and you pay double. If you roll four, five, six, it is an automatic win and you win double. Do you understand?"

Daunte nodded and knelt down.

"You had better not cheat," Allise said. "We'll be watching you, sir."

Yaman nodded nervously. "I know. I'll go first."

Everyone waited with abated breath when Yaman threw the dice. They clattered around the bowl until they came up with one, six, and three. "No score. I'll go again."

Yaman threw again and Daunte stiffened when he saw four and five, but visibly relaxed when the final die read three. "No score." He was visibly sweating as he snatched up the dice. "My final turn."

He chucked the dice into the bowl, and this time he had two twos', with a five. He relaxed and grinned at Daunte. "Your turn."

Five was hard to beat. Daunte knew this, but he remained outwardly calm and picked up the dice. He juggled them in his palm briefly and tossed them into the bowl. On his first try he rolled two threes'…and a six.

"Daunte, you won!" Gunther shouted, hugging him from behind.

Yaman looked dismayed, but only for a moment. He sighed heavily. "Well, I'm a man of my word. Here's my 5,000 bits." He handed the money over to Daunte and gathered his things and stood. "Where is your headquarters? I will set up shop there."

"So you intend to gamble on the premises?" Farzin asked.

"Hey, I promised to earn money for this Army. So, which direction should I go in?"

Allise told him where to go, and he was on his way. "You know you guys just got cheated, right?" Lanny asked. "I mean, now that you've set him loose what's to say he'll go to our headquarters?"

"Well if he's smart he'll go," Allise said. "Or else he'll find that most politicians in Nagarea are not as merciful as Lord Eamon was when it comes to gamblers."

Daunte stared at the bits he held in his hand. Then he looked up at Gunther with confusion. "If he had 5,000 bits on him this whole time, then why didn't he pay off his gambling debt?"

* * *

They stayed the night in Uaminifu's inn (which wanted them to stay for free but Daunte insisted on paying full price), and then they purchased horses to travel to the final destination that Oboro had recommended; Peak's Edge on the High Peak Mountains.

Daunte had never been to Peak's Edge. The High Peak Mountains used to be home to thousands of Wingers, but in the last few centuries their numbers dwindled. Now there were maybe two or three hundred Wingers living on the mountains. Peak's Edge was the largest known settlement of Wingers (though Daunte was certain there were more), but given the hostility between humans and Wingers, the last known visit for a human to Peak's Edge was nearly a century ago.

 _I'm interested to see who wants to be recruited up there._

On horseback, they rode north and reached the High Peak Mountains by early afternoon. The horses were immediately on edge, and Daunte knew from previous experience on the mountain that they would not want to travel up the narrow path. They were preparing to dismount when Daunte saw movement out of the corner of his eye.

"Hello to you, strangers." The man was familiar to Daunte, and he was dragging a cart behind himself. Daunte floundered on his name until the man continued. "My name is Eliasen. Might I have a moment of your time?"

"Oh, I know you," Allise said. "You came to Liberation Army headquarters peddling something."

"Well, that is true," Eliasen said. "But to be more precise, I want to bring change to Nagarea."

"How so?" Gunther asked.

"We are one of the few countries in the entire world who do not follow the universal currency of Potch. In my years of calculation and research, I've come to realize that our bits are worth next to nothing compared to Potch." Eliasen picked up the soroban resting on top of his cart. "It's taken me well over a decade, but I finally perfected a formula to convert bits into Potch."

"Is that so?" Lanny asked with genuine curiosity.

"How much is our bits in comparison to Potch?" Gunther asked.

Eliasen fished around in his pocket and pulled out a coin. It was yellow with the letter 'P' engraved on it. Daunte knew this had to be Potch. He pulled out a second coin that was rust-colored red. Daunte recognized this as bits.

"For one of these," Eliasen said, indicating the Potch. "You would need ten of these." He indicated the bits.

"So Potch is worth _ten times_ the amount of bits?!" Farzin asked incredulously.

"Nagarea has been an isolated country for many years," Eliasen said. "But I want to bring us on par with the rest of world. For the last few years I've been trying to convinced the Theocracy to adopt my currency conversion but they refused. So I went to see Lord Bearyl Lutis about it, but…" he shrugged. "I've had no luck."

Daunte remembered how Bearyl had turned Eliasen out, and how he'd felt it was a missed opportunity. _If…No,_ _ **when**_ _we succeed, our borders will most likely become more open. Once that happens, we will have more foreigners here. How will we expect to welcome foreigners here if we don't know how to convert their currency?_

"But the Theocracy already has currency conversion on the books," Allise said. "They utilize it in Baltas for the few foreign visitors we receive."

Eliasen shook his head. "The Theocracy's idea of currency conversion is giving foreigners the same amount of money in bits that they paid in Potch. It is a completely inaccurate system. _My_ system, however, is very accurate. Trust me when I say that there is no other formula in the world that is more accurate than mine."

Daunte gave this a lot of thought. If he trusted in Eliasen and used his currency conversion system, he knew he would be spending a miniature fortune on converting bits to Potch. If Potch had ten times the value of bits, then 1,000 Potch was worth _10,000_ bits!

 _Thankfully so many monsters drop bits in battle._

"What you're proposing is very innovative," Daunte said, looking at Eliasen. "I would love to have you join our Army and utilize your conversion system."

Eliasen's face brightened, and he firmly shook Daunte's hand. "I promise to work very hard for you, my Lord. Together, we will bring Nagarea back out into the world and out of isolation!"

Daunte gave Eliasen directions to reach headquarters, and Eliasen was nice enough to take their horses with him. Daunte didn't want to risk the horses getting attacked by monsters, and he knew once he was done on the High Peak Mountains he was going to use the Blinking Mirror to return to headquarters. Having successfully recruited another Liberation Army member, they made the trek up the mountain path.

The monsters up there were predictably harder than the last time they were there. Plenty of dragons, even larger spiders, and rabid wolves in large packs. But they remain on guard and fought and pressed forward. Admittedly, Daunte didn't have a clue of how he was supposed to reach Peak's Edge. He knew the path towards the abandoned mine where Sloan Faakhir had held Princess Farrin hostage, but he had a feeling that the Wingers weren't in that general direction.

It was dusk on the High Peak Mountains when the group reached a forked path. Daunte briefly debated which path he should take, when a blood-curdling scream from the right path helped him to quickly make up his mind.

"Let's go!" Gunther shouted, unsheathing his sword. They raced down the path as the screaming grew louder and more frantic. They rounded the corner and what he saw caused Daunte to pause but briefly.

It was a female Winger, perhaps Daunte's own age, and she was partially sprawled on the ground with a large rabid bear on top of her. She was frantically trying to use a spear to protect herself from the bear's jaws, but the bear was growling gutturally and overpowering her.

Daunte overcame his brief shock and shouted. He activated his Boar Rune and began pummeling the bear. The new distraction worked and the bear immediately forgot the Winger and turned its attention to Daunte. Luckily, the rest of Daunte's group joined the fight and after a short battle the bear fell over, dead.

"Are you all right?" Allise was at the female Winger's side. Gunther joined Allise and helped the trembling girl into a sitting position. "Were you bit? Are you injured anywhere?"

"I-I'm grounded," the Winger sobbed, wiping at the tears on her face. "I-I flew into a tree on the cliff above us and fell! I haven't been able to fly back up, and then I was attack by that bear!"

Daunte checked on her wings. They were pale grey, almost white, but Daunte did see that her right wing was not as straight as the other. She had a unique appearance. Other Wingers that Daunte had seen had disheveled appearances. Not this Winger. She wore a green leafy dress and other than her wings and her clawed feet she was clean and looked proper. Surprisingly, her appearance looked closer to a Holly Fairy than a Winger. Her hair was short and permed like a Holly Fairy, though the color was platinum and not pink, and she even had flowers in her hair. She sniffled and she looked, her blue eyes dark and looking at each of them.

"You…You are humans?" she asked. She bowed slightly. "Thank you for saving me."

"What's your name?" Lanny asked her.

"A-Ah, my name is Dahlia. I'm from Peak's Edge. What brings you all here?"

"We're traveling through," Daunte said. He raised his right hand over her. " _Howl_."

To his relief, his healing spell straightened Dahlia's wing. Her face lit up and she was able to stand up. "I…you healed me!" she beat her wings, and she laughed with relief. "Oh, my goodness! I can fly back up now!" she turned to face Daunte. "You saved my life and you healed me! I don't know how to thank you enough for this!"

"Can you tell me where Peak's Edge is?" Daunte asked her.

Dahlia's face fell, and she looked uncomfortable. "I…ah…"

" _Dahlia_!"

Daunte jumped at he heard the striking sound of beating wings. He was on edge as they were suddenly surrounded by a circle of Wingers, all of them armed and looking threatening. A shadow fell directly beside Dahlia, and Daunte recognized Oisin. The Winger turned Dahlia's face towards him, and rage quickly filled his face when he saw the tears on her cheeks.

"You _filthy humans_!" Oisin roared. He advanced on Daunte and swung his spear. "What did you do to her?!"

"Oisin, _stop_!" Dahlia grabbed him by his arm. "Oisin, they saved me! I was grounded and got attacked by a bear, and they saved me! That human boy even healed me!"

Oisin looked at her. "They did not harm you in any way?"

"No, look!" Gunther snapped, jabbing a finger at the dead bear. "We saved her from that!"

Oisin and the other Wingers looked at the bear. One of the Wingers knelt down to check it. "This was a rabid animal."

"What were you _thinking_ , flying all the way out here by yourself like that?!" Oisin admonished Dahlia, cupping her face in his palms. "Do you know what would've happened to you if you'd been here by yourself any longer?!"

"I can't take care of myself," Dahlia told him harshly, pushing his hands away.

" _Clearly_ you can't!" Oisin snapped at her. He paused however when he saw how much that comment hurt her. He stepped closer and gave her a quiet apology before turning back to Daunte. Despite Daunte having saved Dahlia, the Winger still looked hostile. "And what are you doing here? Why have you come back? I thought I made it clear to you that humans are not welcome on the High Peak Mountains!"

"I was looking for Peak's Edge," Daunte said. "I'm with the Liberation Army, and I—"

"I don't care," Oisin interjected. "You're not coming to Peak's Edge! Now get off our mountain!"

"Oisin he saved me!" Dahlia shouted at him. "They could've left me to die, but they didn't! I don't believe they would use their knowledge of our village against us, so the very least we can do is grant them their wish!"

"I'm not going to allow this!"

"Well it's not _your_ choice, is it?! My father is our chieftain, so _my_ authority overrules yours! I say they're welcome to Peak's Edge!"

They argued back and forth about this for several minutes. Daunte saw that the other Wingers were awkward at having to witness this. Daunte had to guess, by their intimate gestures and the way they spoke to each other, that Oisin and Dahlia were in a relationship.

 _Oisin is probably ashamed that we saved his girlfriend and he didn't. But I hope he understands that we mean no harm._

"Fine!" Oisin finally shouted. He turned to glare at Daunte. "We'll take you to Peak's Edge and to our chieftain. But!" he snapped. "But we're going to carry you there! You will _not_ know the path up to Peak's Edge!"

Daunte knew that it wouldn't matter because he could simply have Viki teleport him to Peak's Edge if he wanted. So he simply nodded. "Understood. I won't stay long, I promise."

* * *

Predictably they faced heavy hostility from the Wingers at Peak's Edge. The village fit the name—it was right on the edge of a cliff. To their left there was a large wall of mountain that stretched so high that Daunte had to tilt his head back to see the top. All the way up the wall he saw several houses. He knew he couldn't get up to these homes unless he had wings.

He met with the chieftain, who had a stocky figure but Dahlia had a strong physical resemblance to him. The chieftain thanked them for saving Dahlia, but other than that wanted them gone as quick as possible. Daunte remembered though that Oboro had recommended Peak's Edge and tried to be persuasive. Unfortunately, this only made the chieftain irritated and he finally yelled at them to leave. Daunte didn't miss the smug look on Oisin's face. But his spirits lifted a little when Dahlia hugged him and thanked him again for saving her. This of course wiped the smug look off Oisin's face.

"Well this was a waste of time," Farzin said. It had turned nighttime, and Daunte didn't want to stay the night. "Shall we head back to headquarters?"

"It wasn't an entire waste," Desiree said. "We saved that poor girl after all. And we have visited Peak's Edge so we come back whenever we like."

"That's true," Allise said with a smile.

"Oh! Strangers!"

Daunte looked to his right. A Winger looking to be twenty years old was kneeling next to an anvil and holding a worn blacksmith hammer in his right hand. His left hand was waving to them. "Welcome to Peak's Edge, humans! Would you like me to sharpen your weapons?"

Daunte was surprised to meet a Winger who was actually friendly towards them. He had a rather unique hairstyle—his shaggy yellow hair on the left side of his head was loose, while on the right side it was tied in a tight braid. His big brown eyes were very friendly and his wore a friendly smile as well.

Daunte approached him. "How high of a level can you sharpen our weapons to, Mr…?"

"Baldemar," the blacksmith greeted. "And Euphoria can sharpen your weapons to level 9."

"Level 10?!" Lanny exclaimed.

"'Euphoria'?" Daunte echoed.

"Here, let me introduce you." Baldemar hoisted up his hammer. "This is Euphoria. She has been my constant companion for the last three years. I trust her more than anyone else."

"…You named your hammer?" Farzin asked.

Baldemar shrugged. "Why not? People name their swords all the time. Our tools are an extension of our bodies—as important to us as family or lover. Euphoria has never failed me, so you can trust her as well."

"I see," Daunte said. He slid off his tekko. "Can you sharpen my weapon?"

"Oh, absolutely!" Baldemar was positively giddy as he set one of Daunte's tekko up in a proper position. Then he raised Euphoria high over his head. "Hi-YA!" and brought the hammer down.

Euphoria clanged against Daunte's tekko, and promptly broke in half.

The next few moments were awkward to Daunte. Baldemar reacted to the destruction of his beloved hammer as though he had just witnessed his loved one die in front of him. "No! Euphoria! This can't be!" he scrambled to pick up the broken pieces of his hammer. Within seconds he was crying uncontrollably. "I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to hurt you! Please forgive me!"

Gunther tugged on Daunte's arm. "Let's go."

"But—" Daunte said.

"He'll be okay after he gets another hammer," Allise said in a soft voice.

" _EUPHORIA_!" Baldemar wailed.

"U-Um," Daunte said, retrieving his tekko. "Please excuse us." They quickly went on their way.


	33. Chapter Four: Part Four

Part Four

When Daunte used the Blinking Mirror to teleport the party back to headquarters, he was stunned. Somehow everyone he had recruited—Jeane, Yaman, Eliasen—had beaten him back to HQ and were scattered around. Jeane had set up shop on the second floor beside Gusoku of the northwest building. Eliasen had set up shop on the second floor of the southwest building. And Yaman was in the inn/tavern building on the first floor, challenging many people to _Chinchirorin_.

"How did they get here before us?" Daunte wondered out loud.

Allise shrugged. "They must have run very fast."

Daunte looked at his group. "Thank you for your assistance. You're dismissed."

The group dispersed and Daunte quickly headed for the main building. It was pretty late at night but the headquarters was still very active as he ran all the way up to the fifth floor. Before turning in, he needed to report to Caesar about how his recruitment quest had gone.

"Excellent, my Lord," Caesar told him once Daunte finished his debriefing. "I've received word that one hundred extra volunteers from Uaminifu are on their way here."

"Really? One hundred more?" Daunte was surprised.

"We heard about how you stuck your neck out for a drifter in the city," Caesar said. "A lot of people witnessed it, and a lot of people were inspired by it. They think it's admirable that you, the leader of the Liberation Army, took such care of someone who wasn't even in your Army."

So did everyone know then that La'Ahad had not been one of his soldiers? Daunte shrugged. "All I did was pay for his dinner. It wasn't anything miraculous."

"Yes, but you demonstrated your care for your fellow man. It's really made people recognize how much you care for those who serve under you, and they want to join the fight because of it."

Daunte slowly nodded. "I'll be glad to welcome them."

"However, there is something I want to discuss with you." Caesar gestured to Daunte to take a seat at the war table. Daunte complied, and Caesar sat down next to him. "It concerns the refugees of the Dark Chasm."

"What about them?" Daunte asked.

"This is a report of our resources." Caesar presented Daunte with a thick stack of paper. Daunte started to read it when Caesar continued. "It won't surprise you to know that three-quarters of our resources have been diverted to take care of these children."

Daunte felt a twist of discomfort in his stomach, but he didn't show it. "It's not surprising. Most of the children are still malnourished and sick. Even with our healing Runes it will take them time to recover."

"My Lord, many of them are _not_ recovering."

A jolt of shock shook Daunte to his core and he gaped at Caesar. "The children are receiving the bulk of medical supplies, medical care, and food," Caesar continued. "But for many of them it's not enough. Even with the food and added care, some are still too weak to get out of bed. I've done an assessment of the care we've been providing them, and I've come to the conclusion that we're in over our heads. We've diverted so much time into taking care of the children that it's starting to interfere with training drills. Clara and Dr. Yulin have not been taking care of any other patients other than these children, and even though they're both brilliant doctors they're overwhelmed. Your liberation of the Dark Chasm was a noble and righteous move, however at it currently stands I'm afraid our Army doesn't have the necessary capabilities of caring for them."

A surge of anger shot through Daunte and he quickly stood up. "If you're suggesting that we throw the children out, you can be quiet Caesar! There is no one else who would care for these children if we send them away! I understand that the care these children need is very time-consuming, but I would _never_ abandon them to their fates!"

Caesar stood up and raised his hands defensively. "Lord Daunte, I would never suggest throwing the children out. But I needed to tell it to you like it is based on my assessment. Caring for these children is beyond the means of the Liberation Army. As it stands now we don't have enough food to feed everyone, and if the Theocracy were to attack us we would be completely underprepared for it. I'm not asking you to get rid of the children of the Dark Chasm, but I wanted you to understand that their care is stretching our resources completely thin. That's all."

Daunte's breathing was ragged and he closed his eyes. This isn't what he wanted to happen. It would've been ideal if the children instantaneously got better with the move to HQ, but it wasn't happening. He had hoped things would be much better by liberating the Dark Chasm, but for all intents and purposes it just seemed like he made things _worse_ for his Army by doing this.

 _But they needed to be liberated. How many more children would've died if we had left things be?_

Daunte finally opened his eyes and looked to Caesar. "I will think of something," he promised, though his stomach churned. "Please, allow me to sleep on this and I will think of something."

"My Lord, I don't want to put pressure of you. You don't need to come to a split decision about this. We're doing okay for right now; it's just in the long run this will prove difficult for us. Whatever you decide to do, I will trust in your judgment."

Daunte nodded stiffly. "Thank you for bringing this to my attention. I'm going to go to bed now."

"All right. Have a good night."

Daunte still felt sick as he went back down to the fourth floor. He couldn't, _couldn't_ abandon the children! But if they weren't capable of taking care of them, then…what could they do?

 _Just sleep on it. You'll think of something._

Before going to bed, Daunte checked up on Arin. His little brother was asleep and Daunte felt bad about waking him up, but Arin didn't seem to mind and woke right up. "Welcome back, Big Brother."

"Thanks." Daunte sat down on his bed. "How have you been feeling?"

"Great," Arin said, positively smiling. "Everyone is really nice here. Did you hear that Jantu and Keiran Umed had a duel? It last for _three hours_!"

"I wish I could've seen it," Daunte laughed.

Arin was silent for a long moment before speaking. "I-Is everything okay, Daunte?"

Daunte shrugged and almost shook his head. Arin was a child and he didn't want to burden his little brother with his own issues. But ultimately Daunte just wanted _someone_ to talk to. Even if it was a nine-year-old boy. "We're having some…problems."

"Is there anything I can do to help?" Arin asked.

Daunte shook his head. "It's the children of the Dark Chasm. Taking them in has proven to be more difficult than we imagined. When I liberated the Dark Chasm I didn't consider the strain it would cause on our resources. I just wanted to get them the hell out of there. But according to Caesar we're running out of food to give everyone, and not a lot of the kids are getting better despite the help we've given them."

"But we _need_ to help them!" Arin said desperately. "Who else is going to help them if we don't?!"

"I know, Arin. That's the drawback of being leader. I have to make decisions that are best for everyone. Taking in the children was what was best for the children, but the Army…" Daunte shrugged. "Eventually our soldiers are going to starve, and both Dr. Yulin and Clara might die if they don't take a break. Taking care of the children has put a generous amount of strain on them."

Arin thought about this for several long minutes. During that time an awkward silence stretched throughout the room as Daunte pondered what to do.

Then Arin smiled brightly. "You'll think of the right thing to do. I trust you to, Big Brother."

Daunte forced a smile at him. "Thank you, Arin."

But he still felt no better as he went into his own bedroom. He got changed into his pajamas and rubbed both hands over his face several times. He sat down heavily onto the bed and looked towards the ceiling. "What am I going to do, Mom?" he said aloud.

"Daunte."

Daunte yelped and jumped straight out of bed as a white light filled the room. It expanded across the room right in front of Daunte, but he relaxed slightly as a floating figure emerged from the light. Her feet touched down gently onto the floor as the light faded. Daunte knew who she was and stood up a little straighter. "…Lady Leknaat."

"Daunte," Leknaat greeted him in kind with a slight bow of her head. "Or rather, Lord Daunte. I sensed that you have taken the mantle fitting of your role as the Tenkai Star. Congratulations."

"Um…" Daunte looked around the room awkwardly before looking back at her. He gestured to the table, though he flushed at doing so since she couldn't see the gesture. "Would you like to sit down?"

"Thank you, but I won't be staying long. I'll remain standing, if it suits you."

"Okay." Daunte rubbed at his nape. "Can I…help you with something?"

"I sensed that the Stars of Destiny have started to come into alignment here in Nagarea, so I wanted to check in on you," Leknaat responded. "There is a…peculiarity in this country that has gotten my attention, but I don't know for certain what it is. However, I have also sensed that as the Tenkai Star you are shouldered with a heavy burden. It is the curse of the Tenkai Star to carry the weight of the destiny of the other 107 Stars, but I would like to offer you help if you would need it. Is there anything you wish to discuss with me?"

Daunte had only met Leknaat once before, and very briefly too. He wasn't sure if it was a good idea unloading his stress onto her when he didn't know anything about her, but he couldn't deny that he felt at ease being around the older woman. Though she spoke in riddle, her presence was warm and comforting. It made Daunte want to trust her.

So, he let out the breath he was holding and quickly explained the situation about the children of the Dark Chasm. Leknaat listened attentively, her eyes still closed and her face unmoving. When Daunte finished she slowly nodded. "You are right to want to care for the children, and you are also right to be concerned for the well-being of your Army. Undoubtedly when you grow into a greater force to be reckoned with, you would have the capability of caring for such poor children. However, as it stands you can barely take care of the Army you're building up. I can see that this is a great moral dilemma for you."

She'd said 'when you grow into a greater force'. Not _if_ but _when_. The subtle difference was a great mood lifter for Daunte. Having this anomaly of a woman speak about his success with certainty made him more confident that he _would_ succeed.

But Daunte stilled pressed forward. "What do you think I should do?"

"It's very simple," Leknaat said. "Your forces are currently incapable of giving the children the care that they need. So you should reach out to allies who would be able to take care of them."

"But who?" Daunte asked. "Nagarea is an isolated country! We alone are standing against a tyrannical government! There's no one I could ask to take these children in!"

"I don't believe that, Lord Daunte. And neither do you."

Daunte stared at her stunned. Leknaat gestured to him very slightly. "I must go for now. You have my word that I will return to you in the near future. Until then, please rely on your inner strength and on the strength of your allies. Never forget that you are not alone in this."

"W-Wait a minute," Daunte said. "Before you go, can I ask you a question?"

"Of course, my Lord."

"Why are you helping me? I have no idea who you are, or even if you're Nagarean. But this is the second you've shown up to give me advice and information that I've needed. Why would you do that?"

Leknaat smiled serenely. "Because it is the right thing to do. Until we meet again."

The room filled with light once more, and within moments Daunte was left standing in the middle of his room alone. He rubbed at his eyes, wondering if he'd hallucinated the whole thing. Ultimately he decided that yes, Leknaat _had_ come to see him again.

 _But I'm no closer to finding my answers than I was before she arrived._ Daunte climbed into bed and stared at the ceiling for a long time. _What am I supposed to do? I'm not going to abandon the children, but the Army isn't capable of taking care of them! Lady Leknaat said that I should rely on my allies, but all of my allies are right here! I'm already relying on them enough as it is! Who could I possibly ask to take in over three hundred starving and sickly children? Who would have the resources to take care of them?_

He closed his eyes, feeling sick to his stomach. He lay there for several minutes, trying to figure out what he needed to do. Who on earth could he ask to care for so many kids? To feed them and to provide them good care? This monumental task seemed impossible.

" _I know that you contributed greatly to the rescue of all of my kin, and I am eternally grateful to you."_

Daunte's eyes quickly snapped open, and a sharp jolt shook his body as he quickly sat up. "Falena."

* * *

The following morning Daunte quickly ate his breakfast with Arin and raced up to the sixth floor to speak to Caesar. He wanted to tell Caesar about his idea as soon as possible, but the moment he arrived in the war room he paused at who he saw. Gunther, Allise, Eamon, Keiran, Roen, Felicity, and Caesar were there, but so was someone else.

"Lord Daunte." Varnaz saluted him. "I have returned."

Varnaz had returned to HQ with his envoy during the night. Despite having maybe four or five hours of sleep, Varnaz looked fully alert. Daunte approached him. "Welcome back. What have you found?"

"After an extensive search, Varnaz found Lord Lorik and the remaining survivors of Agameru," Caesar said, stepping forward. "They're south, deep in the Red Tundra."

Daunte nodded. "How many survivors are there?"

"Twenty at the very most," Varnaz said. "Most of them are children, very few able-bodied adults. They're short on supplies, and with the terrain they're incapable of growing their own food. They're in dire straits."

"But they did not come back with you," Daunte immediately observed.

Varnaz slowly shook his head. "Lord Lorik would not even see me. We tried to explain that the Liberation Army was under a new leader and that we wanted to take them in, but they remained stubborn and insisted that we leave. They were acting very unreasonable, considering the circumstances."

"No offense," Gunther said cheekily. "But I think it has _less_ to do with the Army and _more_ to do with the fact that it was _you_ they were dealing with."

Varnaz glared at Gunther, but Daunte stepped in before an argument could break out. "Thank you for this information, Varnaz."

"But Varnaz has a point," Allise said, folding her arms over her chest. "We're genuinely offering them help, and they're allowing their emotions to rule their judgment. Lord Lorik should have more sense than to refuse any means that would help his people."

"Maybe they don't trust us?" Eamon offered, shrugging.

"I don't necessarily blame them," Keiran said. "They must have heard that I've joined the Army."

"Well, it's actually more to it than that," Gunther told him.

"If that's the case, then perhaps you should go and meet with them in person," Caesar said to Daunte. "You should lay out your intentions to them and make it clear that we want to help them. Hopefully meeting the new Liberation Army leader will change their minds."

Daunte nodded. "I agree. I will get ready to go and head out today."

"I will go with you," Varnaz said. "I know how to get to their new encampment, so I'll guide you so you don't get lost in the Red Tundra."

"B-But you just got back," Daunte protested. " _And_ you've spent the last couple of weeks searching! You should rest!"

"How else are you going to find them, Lord Daunte, if I'm not with you to tell you where they are?"

Daunte saw his point, even if he felt like he was overworking Varnaz. He reluctantly nodded. "All right. Thank you for the help."

"Anytime."

"Also—"

"If you're going to tell me about Ramiro Lažov's promotion, you don't need to," Varnaz said darkly. "I heard of it while on the road."

That didn't really surprise Daunte, but he still felt a squirm of discomfort as he looked to Varnaz. "I'm sorry," he offered lamely.

Varnaz shook his head. "This is only an incentive for me to try harder. However, I do have one request of you, my Lord."

"Yes?"

"When we bring Lažov down, leave him to me. I will see to him personally. That's all I ask."

Daunte quickly nodded. "Absolutely. I leave Lažov's fate in your hands." He couldn't possibly deny Varnaz vengeance for the death of his whole family, brought about by a sanctimonious bastard like Ramiro Lažov. Lažov deserved no more than to die by his former brother-in-law's hand.

"Thank you."

"Speak with me directly once you're ready to assemble your party," Caesar told Daunte. "Unless there's anything more, Lord Daunte?"

Daunte nodded, remembering why he had rushed up there to begin with. "Caesar, can you prepare an envoy to travel to Falena?"

"Oh?" Caesar said mildly, grinning at him.

"Wait, you guys are in contact with Falena?" Keiran said. His eyes widened. "That's incredible!"

"Are we reaching out to Falena for a formal alliance, then?" Caesar asked Daunte.

"Not necessarily," Daunte said. He heard the others shift with shock and raised a hand. "I don't want to squander a potential alliance, but I want to see to something else first. I want to ask Falena to take in the children of the Dark Chasm."

" _What_?!" Felicity exclaimed.

"Daunte!" Roen immediately protested. "Are you planning on just _dumping_ the children somewhere else?! You promised to take care of them!"

"Yes, he did," Caesar said. "But as it stands now their care is coming entirely at the expense of the Liberation Army. Not to mention the fact that the care that we're providing them isn't enough. So we're thin on our own resources, _and_ several of the children are not getting better. I wholeheartedly agree with reaching out to Falena about this. They technically still owe us—rather _you_ , my Lord—a favor. You may as well call them in on their favor and have them take the children in."

"Wait a minute," Gunther said, stepping forward. "I thought our 'calling them on their favor' would involve them joining our Army as allies."

"Well we tried that already and look where it got us."

"But it's different now," Allise jumped in. "Our leader now is someone who not only actively participated in the rescue of _all_ the Falenan royals, but he personally saved Falena's Crowned Princess! Not to sound greedy or anything, but we currently _do_ have the upper hand in negotiating an alliance with Falena now! If all we ask of them is to take in the refugees, what obligation would they have to offer any other assistance to us?"

"For one thing, they have nothing to gain by leaving things as they are," Caesar said. "Not only is the Cabinet of High Clerics made up of ex-Falenan assassins, but also they kidnapped almost the entire Royal family. At least with us they can trust that things will definitely change in Nagarea so that something like that won't ever happen again."

"I agree," Daunte said. "I want reach out to them first to see if they will accept the children in. Once that happens we'll work from there about properly securing a political alliance."

"That would be advantageous to us," Keiran agreed. "In addition, it will be a good PR move to only ask them to take in the children as opposed to outright asking for military aid. It demonstrates the level of care that you have given the people who serve under you, my Lord."

"I just…I don't know," Felicity said. "I feel like we're abandoning those kids. What if they feel the same way?"

"They won't feel that way once they're in a country with the resources to take care of them," Caesar spoke up.

"I agree with Lord Daunte," Varnaz said. "Those children deserve care that we're not currently capable of giving them. If there's a chance that Falena will take them in, then I think we should take it."

"And they won't be there forever," Daunte said reassuringly. "I'm not exiling them. Once they get better, and once our Army is in greater stable condition, then I will bring them back. I swear an oath I will bring them back!"

Luckily, Daunte's sheer conviction was enough for everyone to cool down and respond more positively to his idea. "I'll stand by your decision," Allise said.

"As will I," Gunther said.

"If they're willing to take care of the children, then I think we should take the opportunity," Eamon said.

"Surya will definitely take care of them," Felicity said. "He saw firsthand how awful the Dark Chasm was."

"I hope they do get better," Roen said.

"Well it wouldn't do the Falenans any good to mistreat the children," Keiran said. "They would be better off rejecting us outright than doing that."

Caesar patted Daunte on the shoulder and grinned. "I will prepare an envoy to travel to Falena immediately. With any luck they'll be back in time for your return from the Red Tundra."

"Let me write the official letter of request," Daunte said. "I want to show them that this is my personal request."

"How will they know for sure that it's your personal letter?" Eamon asked.

"I wrote a letter to Prince Surya previously. If he still has the letter, they can compare the handwriting to show that it's really from me."

Eamon smiled. "That's an excellent idea, my Lord."

Daunte was honestly touched by the praise and smiled in kind. "Thank you."

"Go ahead and prepare a rough draft of the official letter," Caesar said. "I'll proofread it for you and give you some advice, if necessary, and then write a final draft. We'll send the final draft with the envoy."

* * *

Daunte had thought writing the official letter himself would've been easy. It wasn't. In between stumbling over his words, and Caesar critiquing every sentence, he ended up rewriting the rough draft _five times_ over the course of six hours. And even with Caesar satisfied enough for him to progress to the final draft, that took two tries of writing it before the Army strategist said it was perfect. By the time Daunte was done, half of the afternoon was gone and his hands were covered in black ink. From that moment on he decided he would _never_ write an official letter again.

The one good thing that came out of the time he needed to write and rewrite the letter was that Varnaz got the rest he needed from being on the road. Daunte decided that by the time he was done with the letter that it was too late in the day to venture to the Red Tundra and instead resolved to set out the following morning. The envoy for Falena, however, was immediately prepped and they were sent up the underground river towards the Northern Wharf in a boat.

By dawn the next morning, Daunte was ready to go and went to see Caesar. Varnaz of course was ready to go, and that left Daunte with four more people to choose from. "Roen, Felicity, Priscilla, and…Viki." He shrugged.

"All right," Caesar said. "We'll call your party together and you can be on your way. But don't forget to have Viki wear nose plugs. You've seen her…habit of randomly teleporting people when she sneezes."

Daunte nodded. "Got it."

He said his goodbyes to Arin and set off with his group. He allowed Varnaz to take the lead towards the Red Tundra. But he felt apprehensive as they rode south. He'd never been so far south in Nagarea before, and he knew they had to be careful because of the fact that they were crossing through the southwest provinces to get to the Red Tundra. The last thing he wanted was to draw the attention of Sheikh Keha Hale's forces. But outside of the usual monsters, they ran into no problems.

Three days later, they reached the Red Tundra. The temperature had dropped considerably, but it wasn't the chilly air that set Daunte on edge; the landscape itself was far more uncomfortable. The Red Tundra was a barren wasteland of permafrost. No trees, no grass, just permanently frozen soil that was the color of blood. The Nagarist Faith stipulated that the land had been permanently stained red a from a fierce battle between the worshippers of Nagar and non-believers. Considering that the Red Tundra was approximately three hundred kilometers wide, Daunte wondered just how many people died if this was true.

"Their encampment is about five hours southeast of here," Varnaz said, looking over his shoulder at Daunte. "We should be on guard. The monsters that roam these plains are very fierce."

"No, this won't do. This won't do at all!"

The group started slightly, and Daunte turned to look to his feet. Three meters away he saw a blonde-haired man in his thirties, pouring over a longer sheet of paper. The man was wearing a blue hat and what looked like a blue and white uniform. His brown eyes were narrowed, and he had an expression of deep distress in his face. Daunte glanced at the others, and then dismounted his horse to approach the man.

"This is hopeless!" the man complained, scrubbing a hand over his face. "How am I supposed to complete this map if I can't even get far in this region?!"

"Excuse me," Daunte said.

The man looked up. He seemed relieved to see Daunte and hurried over to him. "Oh, hello! Are you familiar at all with this region?"

Daunte shook his head and looked at the paper in the man's arms. "What is that?"

"Oh, this?" the man showed it to Daunte. "This is a comprehensive map of Nagarea. I came all the way here from the Toran Republic because I wasn't able to find a single map of Nagarea in _any_ of my textbooks. However, the Theocracy wasn't interested in giving me a map, and actually tried to have me arrested! So I've spent the last year or so traveling and dodging soldiers who were trying to arrest me for being in the country illegally, and _this_ is what I've been able to come up with!"

Daunte looked at the map and was immediately impressed. It was far more detailed than the maps they currently had at HQ. Not only was every city listed, but they also listed population sizes for each city, and the High Peak Mountains were a lot more detailed than he'd ever seen them be. The only region that wasn't in a lot of detail was the Red Tundra.

"I've been trying to transverse this region to map it out," the man said. "You know, to find a coastline. There are no markers here, so it's ridiculously easy to get lost. But I'm not a fighter, and the monsters are so violent and powerful that I haven't gotten very far! It's such a shame, really, because this is the only region I have left to explore!"

Daunte stared at the map for a long moment before looking at the man again. "What's your name?"

"Templeton," the man responded. He looked at Daunte's other companions. "I…" his eyes suddenly went wide. "Oh, Viki?"

"Huh?" Viki blinked as she looked at him. "Ah, you seem familiar to me. Who are you, again?"

"It's me, Templeton!" he surged forward towards her horse. "We fought on the same side in the Gate Rune Wars and the Dunan Unification War! But wow—you look the same as you did in both wars!"

"O-Oh, I think I remember you!" Viki laughed a little. "You were that boy who made maps!"

"So you made maps for the armies that you served?" Varnaz asked. He looked to Daunte then and gave a slight nod, as though in approval. Daunte approached Templeton again. "Would you be interested in joining our Army? We have maps at our headquarters, so you can study them and modify them as you wish."

"Really? You want me to join you?" Templeton turned around to face Daunte. "Well…it _would_ be in my best interest to join you since the Theocracy rejected my proposal and has been trying to arrest me for over a year." He nodded eagerly. "Yes. I'll be happy to join you."

Daunte shook his hand. "Thank you. Our headquarters is—"

"Oh, I know where it is," Templeton said. He correctly pointed it out on his large map. "I'll head for there right away. In the meantime, have this." He reached into his satchel and pulled out a rolled-up scroll and handed it to Daunte. "This is a smaller version of this map. I hope this will be of assistance to you."

It was. Daunte quickly unrolled it and was pleased to see that it was just as detailed as the larger map. "Thank you, Templeton."

"I'll work hard to get this map finished up. If you'll excuse me, I'll head to headquarters right away!" Templeton hurried off.

Varnaz came over and looked at the map over Daunte's shoulder. "The Red Tundra may be incomplete, but it looks like he got as far as where Lord Lorik and his people are. This should be able to guide us to where we need to be."

For the next three hours they traveled southwest towards the location of Lorik Varra's camp. Along the way they fought many difficult monsters. Daunte was used to fighting wild boars and wolves, but now they were fighting bronze suns, skeletons, banshees, DoReMi elves, and many assorted and very difficult foes. During the battle one of the banshees dropped a bags of seeds, but Daunte didn't know what plant they were. It was exhausting fighting them, even though Daunte felt he his experience was increasing with each battle.

 _I'm definitely using the Blinking Mirror after I speak to Lord Lorik._

"We're almost there," Varnaz announced, to Daunte's immense relief.

"Oh, who's that?" Roen asked suddenly, pointing.

Daunte looked. To their right just over six meters away they saw a woman in her early thirties on her hands and knees. She was wearing a solid beige veil on her head, though it was wrapped up around her ginger colored hair. She was dressed in a dark pink tunic with beige pants, and her dark eyes were furrowed in concentration as she tried digging into the permafrost.

"What is she doing?" Priscilla wondered out loud.

"Whatever she's doing, I'm surprised she hasn't been attacked by monsters out here," Felicity said.

Daunte drew his horse closer to the woman, and the rest of the group followed suit. They came to a stop less than a meter behind her, although she didn't seem to notice. As Daunte approached, she sighed with exasperation and pulled off one thick glove to wipe at her forehead.

"It's no use," she said with dismay. "Nothing I've planted here has taken root!"

Daunte reached her side. "Are you all right?"

The woman looked up with slight alarm. She sized Daunte up for a moment, and then sized up the rest of the party, before turning back around to look at the crimson ground before her. "The Red Tundra. Nothing has grown here in hundreds of years, but I wanted to try and bring life back to this wasteland. But no matter what I plant—flowers, vegetables, trees—nothing grows! It's very discouraging!"

"Well the land _is_ permafrost," Varnaz pointed out. "Nothing is going to grow here."

The woman shook her head. "I-I still wanted to try. But I've wasted so many seeds…my supply is now short! What am I going to do?"

Daunte remembered the seeds that they'd just picked up and he pulled them out of his satchel. "Will these do?" he handed them to her.

Her face lit up and she quickly opened the bag. "Oh—these are radish seeds! Wonderful! I just ran out of radish seeds!" her face suddenly looked forlorn as she looked out over the landscape once more. "But…But if I plant these, then they'll just go to waste! Where can I possibly go to make my plants take root?"

Daunte of course had an answer for her, and he was elated at the possibility of recruiting a potential gardener to grow food for the Army. Especially with their dwindling supplies. "My name is Daunte, leader of the Liberation Army. What's your name?"

"My name is May," the woman said. She brushed off her tunic and quickly stood up. "I-If you're from the Liberation Army, does this mean that you want to recruit me?"

"Yes," Daunte said. "Our headquarters is on fertile land. You can designate any location for your garden."

May positively smiled at him and clutched the bag of seeds to her chest. "Yes…if there's some place where I can properly grow my seeds, I would be happy to join you! Now, where is your headquarters?"

Daunte showed her the newfound map Templeton had given him, and she nodded in understanding. "I'll go there right this minute and get set up! And if you find any other seeds around, please bring them to me! I can grow anything!"

"…Well," Roen said as she took off. "Now we have someone to grow crops for us."

"Wait, doesn't she still have seeds?" Priscilla asked with confusion. "Why do _you_ need to go out and get more for her, Lord Daunte? Isn't that _her_ job?"

Daunte shrugged. "I'm happy to help in any way I can. How far are we now, Varnaz?"

"Ironically their camp is just over that hill," Varnaz said, pointing due south.

"Well, that' convenient," Viki quipped.

Daunte climbed back onto his horse. "Let's hurry."

They calmly rode their horses to the top of the hills. Daunte looked down below them and his heart leapt into his throat. There were six shaggy tents just below them, and people milling about. Varnaz was right—there wasn't a lot of people, and most of them were very young. They looked world-weary, and while they didn't look malnourished they didn't look like they were in good condition either.

 _I have to help them._

"You!"

A shout startled Daunte and he quickly dismounted. The others followed suit as Tala advanced on them. There was fury in her youthful face, and she readied her gunstock club. "I warned you, Varnaz Behzadi! I warned you that if you showed your sorry face around here again that you would regret it!"

"Hold on a moment!" Daunte interjected. He sidestepped to stand in front of Varnaz. "We're not here to fight! We're here to talk to all of you, and to bring you to our headquarters!"

"As if we would join ranks with _you_!" Tala said harshly. "You—the people who abandoned us to die!"

"Tala, if you would just hear us out," Varnaz said, stepping around Daunte to stand at his side. "As I've repeatedly told all of you, Bearyl Lutis has been ousted from power as commander. This is Lord Daunte, our new leader of the Liberation Army."

Tala stilled in her tracks, but she did not lower her club. She looked Daunte up and down several times in silence before she finally—and visibly reluctantly—lowered her club. "Your lot must be desperate if you're following the orders of a child."

Daunte's brow lifted from the slight insult, but Varnaz stepped forward before he could respond. "Don't speak to our Lord like that. You know nothing of the sacrifices he's made for this Army, and the amount of hard work he's put into our cause!"

Daunte was both surprised and pleased to see Varnaz come to his defense, and he looked at the others in the group. They also looked on guard, and upset by Tala's words. He looked back at Tala, who was indifferent to Varnaz's harsh reprimand. She shrugged slightly. "Well, I'm pleased that bastard is gone from power. I will take you to see my Lord, but don't expect us to change our position."

Tala escorted them into camp. All activity within the small camp ceased and everyone fell silent and stared at them. Daunte felt uncomfortable at seeing the small numbers of the survivors of Agameru, but he kept outwardly calm despite the glares they were receiving. All of the tents were the same size so Daunte did not know which one was Lorik's. Tala guided them to one of the tents, and Daunte was impressed that Lorik was at least modest about his living conditions compared to everyone else. "My Lord," Tala said to the tent flap. "The Liberation Army has returned. Now they've brought their new leader."

"Bring them in," Lorik called from the inside.

"Well, come on," Tala told them curtly. She held the tent flap open and directed them to go in. Once all six were inside she followed.

"Oh. I know you." Lorik Varra stood to attention as he looked at Daunte. The man looked disheveled but otherwise uninjured. Outside of four bedrolls and a trunk, the tent was otherwise empty. "When we attack Sloan Faakhir's Garrison, you led the group that raised the Army's flag."

Daunte nodded. "I'm glad to see that you survived, Lord Lorik."

Lorik shook his head. "We didn't stand a chance. They came at us from all sides. I'm ashamed to have survived when so many of my people died."

Daunte didn't know what to say to that so he said nothing. Lorik shook his head and looked back at Daunte. "But I digress. Why have you come here? While I'm pleased your Army was sensible enough to depose Bearyl Lutis, I've already told Varnaz here that we have no intention of joining you."

"Have you seen your people?" Priscilla asked incredulously. "You really can't afford to be holding grudges here!"

"I'm not holding a grudge. I just don't trust the Liberation Army to take care of us, because you didn't before."

"I don't blame you at all for your feelings," Daunte said. "But I won't let this happen to you again. I don't make these promises lightly. I mean, I liberated the Dark Chasm and have taken in the children who suffered there. We're currently taking care of them. You can trust us to take care of you."

Lorik looked very surprised by this, and for a moment Daunte thought that he would relent. But then his face fell, and he shook his head. "If you're currently taking care of over three hundred children, then I don't expect that my people will be given much attention."

Well…that backfired. But Daunte maintain his patience and raised a hand. "You all will be taken care of. I promise."

"I know this wasn't your fault, but the Liberation Army abandoned us to die," Lorik said. "They ignored our pleas for help before and after the massacre. We _begged_ you to assist us and you turned our backs on us. Now you suddenly want to help us? After everything you've allowed to happen to us? Forgive me for being skeptical, but I know that you're low on resources and manpower, and I cannot help but think that you're only here to recruit us for your standing Army. You've used us enough for your own purposes without giving anything in return. I'm not going back to such a thing, and neither are my people."

"I was abandoned to die."

Daunte looked at Varnaz with shock, but the other man was looking at Lorik. "Bearyl Lutis sent my soldiers and I behind enemy lines with the promise of backup to cover our retreat. However, instead he called for an Army-wide retreat. He ran away from battle without having any initiative to send someone to rescue us. And I was his _best friend_! I would've died if it weren't for Lord Daunte! He came behind enemy lines, with just _five people_ , and held off the enemy long enough for us to retreat. He was captured, held for days while Lutis made no move to rescue him and you know the very first thing he asked for once he came back to us? Not for compensation, not a confrontation at being abandoned—he asked that we mobilize to protect Uaminifu! Do you know what his very first order was as leader of this Army? To find _you_ and to make sure you were all right! I've _never_ seen him act in his own self-interest! Everything he has done has been in the service of others! I tell you right now that if we had him as our leader sooner, then this war would already be over! If he tells you that he wants to help you, you better believe he's telling the truth! Actions speak louder than words, and _his_ actions have proven his integrity and his dedication to making Nagarea a much better place!"

Daunte was honestly surprised by Varnaz's behavior. It was hard to believe that not too long ago this was the same man who treated him with open hostility and scorn. Did he really mean what he was saying, or was he putting on an act to convince Lorik to join them?

 _Or maybe being away from Bearyl Lutis has been much better for him than the rest of us?_

Lorik looked moved by Varnaz's words, and Daunte saw that the man was deeply conflicted about what to do. Daunte honestly felt sorry for him. It had to be a struggle trying to decide what was best for his people.

Lorik bent his head slightly and rubbed at his face. When his head lifted, Daunte's heart sank. His expression was hard once more. "I'm sorry, but I don't trust any of you. I'm not going to join the Liberation Army. The risks are not worth it. Please leave and do not return."

"Why don't you forget your damned pride and take care of your people?!" Varnaz snapped.

Lorik shrugged very slightly, his expression sad. "That's all I've been doing."

* * *

There was nothing they could do to convince Lorik to come to their side. None of the survivors of Agameru seemed inclined to join them, either. Daunte didn't want to leave them to their fate, but it was painfully clear that they didn't want them around. They had no choice _but_ to leave.

 _I have the Blinking Mirror, however, so I can come back here whenever I need to. Once we have a stable flow of supplies at headquarters, I'll bring some food and clothing here._

As Tala escorted them out of camp, a figure suddenly jumped out from behind a tent. "So you dare to show your faces back here?!"

"Zander!" Tala snapped, and Daunte felt a jolt. "We warned you to remain in hiding in case they come back!"

"I don't need to hide!" Zander hollered. " _They_ caused their own downfall _and_ ours! I'm not afraid of them!"

"Oh, it's the broody boy I saw in the Sheikh's Garrison jail," Priscilla said amusedly.

"Wait, what are you guys talking about?" Felicity asked. "Why would you hide Zander from us?"

Tala stiffened, and some of the bravado disappeared from Zander's face. Daunte quickly suspected why they hid Zander—because of what'd happened with Keiran Umed's Garrison. Zander had undoubtedly told the former Sheikh where the former headquarters was as retaliation for Bearyl Lutis not giving a damn about the fate of Agameru.

 _So they were afraid we would want revenge on Zander for what he did. But in all honesties, I don't blame him for what he did._

Daunte knew he could still verbally condemn Zander for selling them out, keep silent, or ask Zander how he was doing. Daunte saw however that despite the circumstances that Zander looked much better than before, and he carefully took a step forward. "I'm glad to see that you're still alive. How are you doing?"

"I could be better," Zander responded. I kept running and running and—WAIT!" he seemed to remember himself and glared at Daunte. "How dare you speak to me so casually! After everything you did to us!"

"Daunte was the one who brought you into our headquarters to get you medical attention!" Roen reminded him. "He's _not_ the same as Bearyl Lutis!"

Zander looked at Daunte closely, and something flickered across his face. "You…Yeah. You look familiar to me. I remember falling off my horse and someone was screaming for help. Was that you?"

Daunte slowly nodded. "I'm sorry I didn't do more to stand up for you to our former leader."

Zander looked incredibly upset, and for a moment Daunte saw a sliver of guilt in his expression. It took Daunte off-guard. _He…He feels bad about what he did?_

But the moment passed and Zander looked angry again. "I'll never forgive any of you for what you did to us. I— _we_ lost everything because of the Liberation Army! I would rather die than join you!" he took off running.

Daunte watched him go, but Tala brought his attention back to her, her gaze hard. "It's not just Zander. We all share that sentiment. Don't come back here again."

Daunt had wanted to help them, but he knew there wasn't much he could do if they didn't _want_ his help. Sighing heavily, he reached into his pocket and pulled out the Blinking Mirror. "You'll want to stand back, otherwise you might be teleported with us."

The survivors of Agameru complied, and Daunte used the Blinking Mirror to return his party to headquarters.

* * *

"So Lord Lorik would not accept our help even after our leader humbled himself to him?" Caesar surmised. He shook his head. "That's a shame. But there's not a lot we can do if they're refusing our help."

Back at HQ, both Templeton and May had already gotten situated (somehow miraculously beating Daunte back to headquarters). Templeton had taken one of the room on the first floor, and his giant map was spread out stretching halfway across the room. May had found a gardening location in the northeast end of the compound, even further north than the northeast building. She'd already set up a lovely garden beside a white marble gazebo. Flowers were already growing there and she tended to them, but she also started growing vegetables. Despite her failure in the Red Tundra, she had quickly grown fond of her new quarters.

"Caesar, once we have a stable flow of supplies coming through our headquarters, I would like to send supplies to them," Daunte said. "Even if they don't want to join us, I want to help them in some way."

"But if they're already refusing your help, they may refuse the supplies you send them," Keiran pointed out.

"Hopefully Lorik Varra will let go of his pride long enough to accept them," Allise said.

"Also, I wanted to report to you that our envoy that we sent to Falena has not returned yet," Caesar said. "But I wouldn't worry. Even with a Water or Flowing Rune it's still a long travel. Plus, I'm sure their Parliament will want to convene and hold a vote about this."

Daunte nodded and turned to his companions. "Unless there's anything else to report…?" he let the sentence trail off in wait for an answer. He did not receive one and smiled. "Thank you all for a good job. You're dismissed."

Everyone complied and disperse. Caesar approached Daunte. "You've been working overtime, as usual. Why don't you take the rest of the day off?"

Daunte forced a smile at him. "I'll check on how the Army is doing and then I'll get some rest."

* * *

That evening Daunte drank some of the tea Tidur sent up to him as he got ready for bed. He was finally able to go down into the underground cavern because the stairs had been fixed. Despite being a wet cave he'd been surprised that some of the small tunnels had been converted into roomy bedrooms. Sharon was having a blast with both Suna and Azul in a room close to the entrance, and deeper into the cavern he found a room Nash and Sierra were sharing. Nash was his usual cheerful (but shifty) self, and Sierra was fast asleep. Even in the middle of the day.

 _But everyone seems to be settling in well. That's good. I just wish I could solve all these problems that I have. The children of the Dark Chasm, the survivors of Agameru, our supplies! Not to mention the fact that despite the volunteers we're still lacking in numbers. I really hope we receive positive feedback from Falena. Even if they agree to take the children though, it doesn't guarantee me soldiers…_

There was a knock at his bedroom door. Daunte had started to remove his vest but he quickly shrugged it off. "Come in."

The door opened, and Caesar strolled inside. "Good evening, Lord Daunte. I hope I'm not disturbing you."

"No, not at all." Daunte gestured to a seat at the table. "Have a seat. Ms. Tidur sent tea up to me, so help yourself."

"Oh, thank you." Caesar took a seat and poured himself a cup. Daunte also had another cup of tea and sat opposite of Caesar. He grinned around his cup. "This is good. What tea leaves are these?"

"Valerian," Daunte said, sitting down. "Ms. Tidur said it would help me sleep."

"Hmm." Caesar took a long drink from his cup.

"So what brings you here?" Daunte asked him.

Caesar didn't answer him at first. Instead he finished his tea and poured himself another glass. Daunte waited in silence as he took another sip and drank his own tea to give himself something to do.

"Can I ask you something, Lord Daunte?" Caesar said suddenly.

Daunte looked at him. "What, Caesar?"

"Do you want us to succeed?"

This seemed to be an odd question for Caesar to ask, but Daunte stilled when he saw the look on Caesar's face. The strategist looked…grim.

"Of course I want us to succeed," Daunte replied.

"Are you truly serious about winning this war?"

"Yes."

"Will you accept any means to win this war?"

 _This_ made Daunte very uncomfortable and he stood up. "Caesar, what are you getting at? Are you questioning my commitment to the Army?"

"No, of course not," Caesar said, also standing up. "I'm only asking you how far you would go in order for us to succeed."

"I would do _anything_ to make sure we succeed," Daunte quickly said. Then he backpedaled. "But not at the expense of others. Never."

Caesar gave this a lot of thought before he finally nodded. "All right." He gestured to Daunte. "Please, come with me."

"Where to?"

Caesar smiled thinly. "We're going to summon some much needed help to our cause."


	34. Chapter Four: Part Five

Part Five

Bewildered and curious, Daunte followed Caesar upstairs. It was the middle of the night so most people were getting ready for bed, though on the fifth floor Daunte could see that there were still soldiers and civilians walking around outside.

"Right this way, my Lord," Caesar said, opening the doors to the war room. Daunte followed him inside, though he paused on the threshold. The room had been cleared of all furniture. There was nothing in the room except for a giant circle that looked like it'd been drawn with charcoal, and the circumference took up almost the entire room. Within the circle there was an 'X'.

"Caesar, what is this?" Daunte asked, pointing to the circle.

"Like I told you, Lord Daunte, we're going to summon help to our side," Caesar responded. He hurried over to a corner and picked up a very thick, aging book. It had at least a dozen bookmarks in it. "This has been in my family for—um, almost thirty years."

Daunte arched an eyebrow. Considering how old the book was, he'd half-expected Caesar to say it'd been in his family for centuries.

"There's a summoning spell in here," Caesar said, flipping open to a specific page. "That my grandfather translated. You want to end this war swiftly, correct?"

Daunte nodded. "Well, we can summon a…individual who would _greatly_ assist us in victory. Unless this person has already been summoned for other purposes, then we'd be out of luck. But it doesn't hurt to try, does it?"

Daunte felt a squirm of discomfort in the pit of his stomach. He felt like this was dabbling in power that he was completely unfamiliar with or comfortable with. What if something went wrong?

"What if something goes wrong?" he asked aloud.

Caesar winced. "That's a possibility. You see, the person we're going to be summoning is a…bit of a monster in man's flesh. He's cruel and fond of killing. _Very_ fond of killing."

"Then why are we summoning him?"

"Because if _you_ summon him, he will be subjected to your will and will have to obey your orders," Caesar said. "You will have a powerful monster whose very efficient at killing at your disposal. He's capable of taking on armies single-handedly. Hell—we might not even need to assemble our soldiers for some battles! We could just send him in solo!" he laughed a little.

"So if I summon him, then I'll have a complete and total psychopath in my headquarters," Daunte said. "I don't think that's a good idea, Caesar. What if he starts killing our own allies?"

"It's like I said, Daunte—once you summon him, he _has_ to obey your orders. He won't be allowed to kill anyone you don't want him to kill. The only things he expects from you is victory and people to kill. If you're successful, then he's at your beck and call for however long you need him."

"…And if I'm not successful?" Daunte dared to ask.

Caesar shrugged. "If you're _not_ successful then your contract is null and void and he will leave you. But like I said, if you want to be victorious I think you should utilize him. Better you than someone else, right?"

Daunte was unsure. Should he take this risk? What were the odds of success? Could one person really do that much damage? He knew if he refused Caesar now that Caesar would respect his wishes and not pursue this further.

But…But Daunte wanted to succeed. And he wanted this war to end quickly. So he finally nodded. "All right."

"Before we continue, I'll summon our allies and inform them of what we're doing," Caesar said. "That way they don't feel left out."

Daunte nodded his understanding. Ten minutes later the room was filled with people and Caesar quickly explained to them what they were planning on doing.

"Wait a moment," Keiran said, raising a hand. "We're going to _summon_ a creature to aid us? Is that really such a good idea?"

"I don't like the sound of it, either," Gunther said, shaking his head. "I don't think we can trust someone—or some _thing_ —that is forcibly subjected to our will. Especially if this thing is as unstable as you say it is."

"I agree," Allise said. "Besides, where is this thing from? What's to stop it from trying to kill us after we summon it?"

"There seems to be far too many unknowns for this to be a logical idea," Eamon said.

"I understand everyone's apprehension," Caesar said, looking at each of them. "And admittedly, it's because of the risks involved in this that I hesitated in doing this before. But we have a war that we need to win, and this individual we will be summoning _will_ bring us victory. You all are in this to win, right?"

Everyone agreed. "Then I ask that you trust me and that you have faith. I would not have even proposed this if I didn't think it would work. If we have this person by our side, then our victory is assured."

"If this creature guarantees us victory," Varnaz suddenly spoke up. "Then why didn't you propose to allow Bearyl Lutis to summon him? Not even when our Army was as crippled as it was?"

The was an excellent point. If summoning this person would bring victory to the Army, then why hadn't Caesar summoned them sooner? Not even when their original headquarters was destroyed, and so many people died during the march on the capital? He looked to Caesar, but the strategist didn't look at all surprised by the questions. He seemed to have been expecting them.

"I didn't offer this to Lord Bearyl because I didn't trust him," Caesar said bluntly.

Everyone shifted with shock, including Daunte. Caesar continued. "As I said, we're not summoning a mindless monster. This is someone who needs to be under control of a responsible person. Bearyl would not have controlled him properly, so I never brought this up to him. We were in a bad position, but trust me when I say that things would've only been made worse if Bearyl had been the one who summoned him. Besides." Caesar shrugged. "I could not, in good conscience, follow through with the summoning ceremony until now."

"Why not?" Allise asked.

"Because the summoning ceremony requires a human sacrifice."

" _What_?!" Daunte shouted with horror.

"But!" Caesar immediately responded, looking at Daunte. "But if you channel the power of your True Rune Daunte, then the sacrifice won't be necessary. The power of the Rune of Restoration will be enough to summon him."

"Then why not allow Daunte to have summoned him sooner?" Felicity asked.

"Because by having Daunte perform the summoning ceremony, the creature will be bound to _him_ and no one else. Do you honestly think Bearyl Lutis would have allowed that?"

That was an excellent point. But Daunte was still on edge and he swallowed thickly before speaking. "Caesar…are you sure the power of my Rune will be enough?"

"Yes," Caesar reassured him. "Your True Rune is woven into the fabric of our world, so that power is sufficient enough to summon him, and will not require a human sacrifice. Please trust me when I say that summoning him will be _very_ beneficial to our Army. This person is a force in and of itself. Even if he is menacing, isn't it better that _we_ make use of him than to have someone else use him against us? The risk is worth it, my Lord. Trust me."

Daunte did trust Caesar, and he looked to the others. Everyone looked concerned about this proposal but no one voiced any objections. Daunte knew then he had to decide once more whether or not to follow through with this. He knew no matter what he decided to do that everyone would support him regardless.

 _I…I don't know if I can control something I don't understand. But Caesar trusts me to do this where he did not trust our former leader with it. He even allowed our Army to nearly come to ruin rather than give Bearyl Lutis the opportunity to do this. That makes me very concerned, but…but if this person can help us win the war, then maybe I should take this chance._

So he nodded. "All right, Caesar. I'll do this."

Caesar grinned at him. "Thank you, my Lord. Everyone, please line up against the windows away from the circle." The rest of their allies complied. Caesar turned to Daunte and held up a dagger. "Here, Lord Daunte. I want you to take position due south on the edge of the circle."

Daunte complied. The dagger's grip was small, but he still held it in two hands to avoid dropping it. "Now, cut your right hand—the hand with the True Rune. Then I want you to walk the path of the circle, and allow your blood to drip on the ground where the circle was drawn. After walking around the circle, you will then cross over the 'X' while still allowing your blood to drip. After you do that, return to this position due south of the circle."

"That sounds like a lot of blood that Daunte will need to spill," Roen said. "Is this a good idea?"

"It's necessary," Caesar said. He looked to Daunte. "Are you ready?"

Daunte slowly nodded. "Yes." He held the dagger in his left hand and after hesitating for a moment he cut a diagonal line down the center of his right palm. The pain sent shockwaves through his body, and Daunte even briefly saw stars. The results were immediate and blood gushed from the wound and spilled onto the floor.

"Quickly! Walk around the circle!" Caesar commanded.

Daunte did as he was told, holding the blade over the wound as he quickly walked around the circle. His blood splashed messily onto the floor and he felt sick to his stomach. The pain was nowhere near as bad as the many times he'd broken his fingers, but it was still intense. He did not dare look at his allies as he walked past them because he could feel the fear they were feeling. He tried to keep his breathing steady as he finished walking around the circle, convincing himself tha this lightheadedness was because of the mild panic he was feeling and not because of the blood loss.

Daunte crossed the 'X' in the circle and hurried back into position. His blood had followed the perfectly drawn circle in a cockeyed manner. Caesar hoisted up the ancient book and flipped it open. He held up the book to eye-level so that Daunte could see. The writing looked faded, and it was a language that Daunte didn't recognize, but Caesar motioned to the loose-leaf of paper inside the book. "Here's the translation of the spell. It will work just as fine as it would in the original language. Hold your hand over the circle and recite it in a commanding voice. Do not show weakness; you are _ordering_ him to come to your side, after all."

Daunte held his right hand over the edge of the circle. It was no longer dripping blood, but it was still bleeding. Maybe his mind was playing tricks on him, but…but it looked like the circle was starting to emit an _aura_. A rather menacing aura.

"Whenever you're ready, Lord Daunte," Caesar told him.

Daunte cleared his throat to steady his voice. He looked down at the translation stuck in the page and began reciting it in a loud, clear voice:

" _ **I call out to the World of Emptiness.**_

 _ **Open to me your arms of anarchy and death!**_

 _ **I call for the black demon who thirsts for blood!**_

 _ **Eye of silver! Eye of crimson!**_

 _ **Power unrivaled within the body of Man!**_

 _ **I call and command the wielder of the Eightfold Rune!**_

 _ **Heed my voice and present yourself to me!"**_

There was no warning. A burst of light erupted from the Rune of Restoration and he yelped as he felt a sharp burning pain from the cut on his hand. Then the outer circle—Daunte's blood and the charcoal—suddenly erupted in black flames. The room erupted in shouts and screams as the flames engulfed the 'X' in the center of the circle. They met in the center and there was a loud explosion, blasting hot air throughout the room. Daunte cried out and raised his uninjured hand. Caesar snapped the book shut and stumbled back. Daunte was aware that the flames had extinguished, and the circle was gone. The charcoal and his blood had disappeared.

And in the center…in the center of where the circle had been, stood an imposing figure in demonic-looking black armor. The helmet covered part of his face, but Daunte saw the striking blond hair spilling out from the helmet, coming down to their waist.

The entire room was silent. Nobody moved or said a word. They just stared at the stranger in silence…and waited.

Finally, he spoke. The low voice immediately sent a chill down Daunte's spine.

"I sense a True Rune."

In the blink of an eye, the stranger pulled out two swords and lunged at Daunte. Daunte shouted, and frantically dove out of the way. The stranger was swift on his feet, swinging his swords so quickly that Daunte didn't have time to counterattack or go on the defense. All he could do was frantically scramble backwards to escape the blades. One of the blades barely missed Daunte's leg and he finally shouted, " _STOP IT_!"

The stranger immediately froze, and the swords fell from both of his hands. At once Keiran and Varnaz seized him and restrained his arms behind his back. He snapped his teeth and growled inhumanly. He lifted his head and Daunte saw his face for the first time. It was the face of a man in his late twenties with heterochromatic eyes; one red and one silver. He looked so angry that Daunte sucked in a sharp breath of fear.

"Now, now. Is that any way for you to treat the person who summoned you, Yuber?"

The stranger—Yuber—stopped struggling and looked over his shoulder as Caesar approached. He scoffed and pulled himself free from Varnaz and Keiran. "Another Silverberg. Does anyone of your blood have anything better to do than bug me?"

"Hey, you should be grateful," Caesar said calmly. "Why, just three years ago we were on opposing sides and you were trying to kill me. Yet despite this I hold no malice towards you."

Yuber stared at him for a long moment. Daunte sensed from his demeanor that he didn't recall anything that Caesar said. "So you decided to summon me after I tried to kill you? Are you stupid?"

"Such harsh words," Caesar replied, though his tone was still cool and collected. "Besides, _I_ wasn't the one who summoned you. I merely provided the spell to my Lord and _he_ summoned you. You're bound to him, not me."

Yuber looked back at Daunte as the teenager stood up. He no longer looked angry, but his eyes were cold and unfeeling. Daunte was deeply regretting summoning him. Yuber instantly trying to kill him didn't help matters, either.

"Why have you summoned me?" Yuber asked Daunte bluntly.

"Well—" Caesar began.

"I asked _him_ and not you," Yuber barked over his shoulder at Caesar. He turned to glare at Daunte once more. "What do you want with me?"

Daunte swallowed thickly and squared his shoulders as he finally spoke. "I…I'm leading an Army to overthrow my government. I would like you to help me win this war."

Something flickered across Yuber's face, and a sliver of amusement crossed his face. "So you instigated a civil war, that would no doubt bring about the deaths of thousands, in order to claim power for yourself?"

"I have no interest in claiming power," Daunte told him. "I just want to make my country a better place."

"I have no interests in your motives. What matters to me is the chaos your war will bring about. _Have_ you brought about chaos?"

Daunte gaped at him. What kind of question was that? He shook his head. "Look, all I'm interested in doing is stopping the madness here. The Cabinet of High Clerics is made up of ex-assassins who have committed mass murder. If taking a stand against them is chaotic, then…" he shrugged. "Then yes. We're bringing chaos."

Yuber gave a slight tilt of his head, as though he were giving Daunte's word a lot of thought. The war room was deadly silent for ten long minutes. Everyone seemed to hold their breath as they waited for Yuber to speak.

Finally, Yuber smiled. But it was an unsettling smile that made Daunte flinch. "Very well. I will lend you my power to win this civil war you started."

Daunte let out a sharp breath. "Than—"

"But," Yuber warned him, his smile abruptly fading. "But if it looks like you're about to lose, I _will_ leave. I have no interest in supporting the losing side."

 _Thanks for the loyalty_ , Daunte thought sarcastically. But he didn't say this out loud and nodded stiffly. "Then, thank you." He held out his hand to shake Yuber's, but Yuber made no move to accept the handshake.

"Before," Caesar said, stepping between them. "Before this partnership goes any further, we're going to need to set some ground rules, Yuber."

Yuber scoffed, and it looked like he was rolling his eyes. "Well if we don't then you're just going to kill indiscriminately," Caesar pointed out. "Lord Daunte summoned you and so long as he's victorious you must obey him. So we might as well set the ground rules _now_ rather than later." He looked at Daunte. "Is this fine, my Lord?"

"Yes," Daunte said.

"Fine," Yuber said through gritted teeth. "Set your "ground rules" for me. But just so you know, I will only allow you to set _three_ ground rules for me. Nothing more."

"That's not your decision to make," Allise spoke sharply behind him. "Lord Daunte summoned you, so only _he_ can set limiters on the ground rules!"

"No, it's okay," Daunte said, raising a hand. "Three ground rules is more than reasonable."

Yuber then looked not so tense. "It's good to see you have common sense."

"Think about this very carefully," Caesar told Daunte. "Yuber may try to find a loophole around any rules you place down."

Because of that, Daunte knew he had to be _very_ specific with these ground rules. He held Yuber's cold gaze as he formulated the rules very carefully in his mind. Once again a long period of silence stretched throughout the war room as everyone waited for Daunte to finish formulating his rules.

 _I'll be as specific as possible with Yuber._

"Rule number one," Daunte said finally, holding up one finger. "You're not allowed to kill _any_ Liberation Army allies."

Yuber shrugged. "Fine."

Daunte however saw the tension in Caesar's face and he realized that this rule wasn't exactly specific enough. But he'd already said it out loud and he couldn't take it back, so he quickly held up a second finger. "Rule number two: you're not allowed to kill _anyone_ unless I tell you to."

Yuber snapped his teeth, and Daunte relaxed slightly as he realized he had something over Yuber. Even Caesar looked a little relaxed. He held up a third finger. "Rule number three: any long-term decisions you plan on making have to be brought to me first and foremost."

"These sound fair," Yuber said. "Now, give me an order."

Daunte lowered his fingers. "Huh?"

"Give me an order," Yuber coldly repeated himself. "You summoned me to kill in your name. I don't intend on remaining idle so give me an order."

Daunte looked at Caesar but the strategist merely shrugged. Daunte looked at the others but they also looked nervous. Daunte then looked at Yuber and hazard a question. "What are your skills?"

"I'm good at killing," Yuber responded. "I also carry the Eightfold Rune." he held up his right fist.

"What is the Eightfold Rune?"

"A True Rune." Yuber left it at that.

"W-Wait a minute," Felicity spoke up. "You attacked Daunte because you sensed his True Rune. But _you_ hold a True Rune yourself?"

"I hate anyone who wields a True Rune," Yuber said bluntly.

"…So you hate yourself, then?" Gunther asked.

"I can also teleport anywhere," Yuber finished, blatantly ignoring Gunther's question.

Daunte looked up at this, and a quick idea popped into his head. "In that case, I want you to teleport to Nagarea's capital city, Mlkwt Alsmwat. The city is due east of here in a hilly region called Winter Hill. I want you to find and assassinate every member of the Cabinet of High Clerics."

"That's a brilliant idea!" Eamon cried out. "Can he really do that?!"

"That sounds too simple," Yuber said. "Is that all you want me to do?"

Daunte nodded. "They're ex-assassins who murdered the previous High Clerics. They deserve what's coming to them, and once they're gone this war will end quickly. Can you do this?"

"I will do this now."

"Wait!" Varnaz said sharply. "Do you know what they look like?!"

"They're dressed in white robes with large horns on their hoods," Daunte quickly said.

"Duly noted," Yuber said. In the blink of an eye he was gone.

"Do we really want someone like that as our ally?" Allise asked with apprehension.

Caesar shrugged. "Well, it's better that he's on _our_ side right?"

"But he has no loyalty to our Lord or our cause," Keiran pointed out. "He may be more trouble than it's worth."

"Well, we've already gone and summoned him," Gunther said, pushing his hands into his pockets. "We might as well make use of him."

"Yuber may seem like a loose cannon, but we have a war we need to win," Caesar reminded them. "He will win this war for us."

There was a sudden 'whoosh' of air and everyone cried out as Yuber suddenly materialized back into the room. "You're already back?!" Eamon exclaimed. "D-Did you kill them all?!"

"I was unable to enter the city," Yuber reported.

Daunte gaped at him. "The moment I teleported to my destination, I was repelled by a very powerful magical force. It was beyond my power to break."

"Wait a minute," Caesar said, his eyes going wide. "Are you saying that the entire city of Mlkwt Alsmwat is under a magical shield?! And it's powerful enough to repel _you_?!"

"Well, this will prove to be problematic," Allise said, folding her arms over her chest. "If the capital is protected by a shield, then how are we supposed to inevitably invade it?"

"This also means our previous attempts to invade were a wasted venture," Varnaz said grimly. "Because even if we'd made it to Mlkwt Alsmwat, we wouldn't have been able to enter the city."

"At least we're aware of it now," Daunte said, looking at everyone. "So now we know what we're in for."

Yuber didn't look upset that his mission had been thwarted. Instead, he actually looked a little excited. "So, there is someone out there who is powerful enough to stop me. I'm intrigued. I look forward to meeting this person on the battlefield." Without another word he swiftly left the room.

"Wait!" Roen shouted after him. "Where are you going?!"

"Let him go," Caesar said. "He won't go far. With Lord Daunte's ground rules he can't go around killing as he desires. Plus, he seems genuinely interested in our cause now. Even if he wasn't able to assassinate the High Clerics today, you can still make use of him."

Daunte slowly nodded. He still wasn't sure if summoning Yuber had been a good idea or not, but it was done and there was no use regretting it. He would just have to make sure that he was victorious…and make sure to keep Yuber in line.

* * *

Because of how late he'd stayed up, Daunte didn't wake until almost the afternoon the following day. He rolled over onto his side and blinked, and he sat up a little when he saw Arin sitting at the table. "Good morning."

"Good _afternoon_ ," Arin corrected, waving. "You really slept in today, Big Brother!"

"I had a late night," Daunte said groggily, rubbing at his face as he slowly sat up.

Arin saw that his hand was bandaged and the smile immediately left his face. "Daunte, you're hurt! What happened?!"

"Don't worry about it," Daunte reassured him. He got up from the bed and joined Arin at the table. "It's just a minor cut. I didn't even need a Rune for it—Clara just stitched me up and sent me on my way."

"Okay…" Arin looked a little down for a moment before brightening again. "Ms. Tidur sent you up some lunch."

"That was nice of her." Daunte noted the plate of sandwiches on the table. The contents consisted of just tomatoes and lettuce. Daunte helped himself.

There was a knock at the door. "Come in!" Arin called out.

Roen came in. "You awake, Daunte?"

"Mmm," Daunte grunted around his sandwich.

"Man, that was crazy last night," Roen said. He helped himself to a sandwich. "That weirdo is loitering on the fifth floor, standing still as a statue. He has this weird, inhuman aura—nobody wants to go near him."

"What weirdo?" Arin asked.

"We summoned a new ally," Daunte told him. He quickly added, "He's very dangerous, so don't go near him."

Arin looked a little frightened. "Will he hurt us?"

"No," Roen told him. "He has to obey Daunte, and Daunte made it clear he's not allowed to hurt anyone without permission."

"…Okay." The child didn't look reassured by that.

"So what brings you here, Roen?" Daunte asked.

"Oh, I almost forgot." Roen finished his sandwich before continuing. "Lord Caesar requested to see you. It looks like the envoy we sent to Falena has returned."

Daunte immediately jumped from the table. "They're back?! Do they have good news?!"

Roen shrugged. "They haven't made their report yet. They're waiting for you."

Daunte didn't dawdle any longer and raced to get ready. Arin was also excited to hear about the news from Falena and the three of them left to go meet with Caesar in the war room. Felicity met them in the hallway and they raced up to the fifth floor. On the fifth floor Daunte saw Yuber standing next to the stairwell leading to the sixth floor. Arin gasped with fear and hid behind Daunte, but Daunte remained calm and nodded towards Yuber.

Yuber said nothing and did not react in any way. It was as though he didn't notice Daunte.

Daunte entered the war room, and greeted his allies. All of the furniture had been returned to their usual spots.

"Hello, Lord Daunte," Caesar greeted him. "I'm sure Roen has told you that our envoy has returned?" he directed a Liberation Army scout to step forward.

"Thank you for coming back so quickly," Daunte told the scout. "How was the trip?"

"We experienced no issues," the scout reported. "The people of Falena were courteous to us and they gave us reasonable accommodations."

"What news have you brought?"

"We presented your official letter to Falena's Parliament, explaining our desire to have the children of the Dark Chasm taken care of. We were lucky that all the representatives were still in Sol-Falena. The Parliament held an official vote, and it was ultimately decided that they would leave your offer to Queen Lymsleia's judgment."

Daunte was surprised by this, when the Parliament had unanimously voted _against_ aiding the Liberation Army previously. But since they were leaving it in the hands of their Queen, who had spoken positively to Daunte when they'd previously met, he knew this was a good sign. "What was Queen Lymsleia's judgment on the matter?"

"Queen Lymsleia has requested an audience with you personally, Lord Daunte, in Sol-Falena. She wants to give you her judgment in person."

* * *

 _Investigations_

 _Secret #1_

 **Name:** Keiran Umed

 **Age:** 24

 **From:** Mlkwt Alsmwat, Nagarea

 **Position:** Former Sheikh of the northeastern provinces

 _Secret #2_

Keiran is from the upper crust of Nagarean society, and he inherited his title of Sheikh from his father. But he is a very capable warrior and doesn't hesitate to fight on the front lines with his men. He's always held a very moderate perspective about the Nagarean faith, but for his own job and personal security he had to pretend to be just as radicalized as his colleagues. He also has a personal code of conduct and honor, which is why he refused to take Princess Kaylani hostage.

 _Secret #3_

He looks like a laid-back elitist, but his swordsmanship is amazing. Did you know that Keiran and Mihr had a duel several years ago that lasted for six hours and went to a draw? People have heard of this and keep asking them to do a rematch, but both parties have refused. The other day he had a duel with Jantu though and Jantu _did_ defeat him, but Keiran seemed to be holding himself back. I think he was trying to humble himself before the Army as repentance for everything he'd done to the Army when he was a Sheikh. People have been slow to warm up to him, but he's such a likeable guy that nobody can stay mad at him for very long.

 _Secret #4_

Keiran was part of an arranged marriage for most of his life, but a few years ago he formally broke off the engagement. He told his betrothed that he could not marry her because he didn't love her, but he also paid back the dowry her family had bestowed upon him when the engagement had been officiated. Most elitist marriages in Nagarean society are arranged marriages, but Keiran did not want to subject his future wife to a potentially unhappy marriage. Though there are also rumors that Keiran ended the engagement because he's already fallen in love...


	35. Chapter Four: Part Six

A new poll is up! This is a long-term poll, so there's no rush to vote! If you're unable to vote, please leave a comment. It will count towards the final total! Here's the link (just add this website's URL to the front): /topic/180690/149110786/1/What-should-be-done-about-Yuber

* * *

Part Six

Word spread quickly about Queen Lymsleia's request to see Daunte in person, and the HQ was filled with excited chatter. There seemed to be no doubt about what Falena's Queen would decide—it _had_ to be positive. Otherwise, why would she have invited Daunte all the way back to Falena?

 _Well, she did the same to Bearyl Lutis. At the same time though, she was testing Bearyl when she invited him, and he failed. I'll have to make sure that_ _ **I**_ _don't fail._

It was still early in the day, but the planned assembly was scheduled for the following afternoon, so Caesar proposed that they leave as soon as possible. Daunte agreed, and began formulating the party to take with him for the trip. Caesar would have to come, of course, but who else would he take?

Of course, he had several volunteers.

"I've always wanted to see Falena," Felicity said. "And I haven't seen Surya in such a long time. Can I come, please?"

"I want to see Surya, too," Roen said. "A-And I'm curious about the Dragon Horses. They have then in Falena's capital, right?"

"I think it's a good idea to bring them along," Caesar said. "On a political level, it would be advantageous for Prince Surya to see more familiar faces. And on a personal level, it will do them some good to get away from fighting for a little while."

"Can I come too?" Arin pleaded. A refusal immediately rose to Daunte's lips but his little brother tugged on his hand. "I want to see Surya again too! I-I was sick for the entire time he was with us, but I do remember him! He's a really cool guy!"

"I see no harm in bringing Arin," Caesar told Daunte. "The change of environment would do him a lot of good, considering he's been shuffled between the Dark Chasm and an army headquarters."

Daunte did want to bring Arin along with him, but he was concerned about something. He pulled Caesar aside to speak with him quietly. "I'd be more than happy to bring my brother with us, but what if Queen Lymsleia thinks I've brought him along to milk sympathy from Falena? Like how Bearyl Lutis tried to use _me_ to milk sympathy?"

"This is an excellent point," Caesar agreed with him. He seemed pleased that Daunte had noticed the implications of bringing Arin with him. "But I wouldn't worry about it. Unlike Bearyl, _you_ have the advantage with the political bargaining with Falena after you took part in saving the entire royal family. Not to mention the fact that the purpose of our visit is to try and convince Falena to take in the Dark Chasm refugees. You don't need to "use" Arin for such a feat when _you_ are walking evidence of the monstrosities of that place."

Daunte breathed out a sigh of relief. "So there's not a chance they will think I'm using Arin to gain an alliance?"

"Oh, there _is_ a chance of someone in Falena believing that," Caesar said. "But it's highly unlikely that Queen Lymsleia would believe it, so there should be no harm in bringing him along. I think a change of environment would do him some good, don't you think?"

Daunte nodded. They returned to the group and he looked at Arin. "If you can go and pack quickly, then you can come with us."

"Thank you, Big Brother!" Arin gave him a quick hug and hurried out of the war room. Roen and Felicity also ran off to pack their things.

"Is there anyone else you would like to bring along?" Caesar asked.

"We're coming, too."

Daunte looked towards the door. Shou came inside, pulling Oboro behind him by his sleeve. "This really isn't necessary," Oboro said. "What are the chances that they'll be in Sol-Falena?"

"Our Army has been formally invited to the capital," Shou told him curtly. "They _will_ be there." he looked to Daunte. "My Lord, we're coming with you too."

Daunte looked between them for a long moment. "Your…mission coming here was to bring Oboro home. Are you both leaving the Army?"

Shou scoffed. "Do you think my parents would _allow_ me to come home after I pledged myself to your cause? Especially before you've even achieved victory? No—I'm dragging this old man home to prove that I _have_ been looking for him. And I know he would simply slip away to come back here, so we won't leave the Army."

"I swore to help you see this through to the end, Lord Daunte," Oboro said, fixing his collar. "But…I suppose it would do some good to see my employees and my family."

"You've been gone for _nine years_!" Shou reminded him harshly. "You better believe you're going to see them!" he looked back at Daunte. "I won't be attending your audience with Queen Lymsleia since I've already met her before. But we'll stay within the city limits while we're there."

Daunte nodded. "I'd be happy to bring you both home. And if you both decide to stay with your families, I won't hold it against you."

"My Lord, I just told you we won't be staying! When it's time for you to leave Sol-Falena, we're going to be leaving with you!"

"Your loyalty is heartwarming," Caesar added. "So we have a fighter in Shou, but Oboro—"

"I don't kill anymore," Oboro told him.

 _Anymore?_ Daunte thought.

"So we need one more combatant," Caesar said, looking at Daunte. "Who would you like to bring along?"

"I'll volunteer out of this," Gunther said. "I was with you guys during the last visit, so I don't want my presence to do anything to remind them of our last visit."

"But _I_ went with you guys too," Daunte said. "So did Caesar."

"But you're our leader," Eamon pointed. "There's no way you _can't_ go. Not after the Queen herself invited you."

"And Lord Caesar is your strategist," Allise pointed out. "He has to come with you too."

"In that case, I will also stay behind," Varnaz said, shifting uncomfortably. "I did not exactly have a welcoming presence when we were last there."

"That's true enough," Gunther muttered, earning him a glare from Varnaz.

"I would like to volunteer," Keiran said. "However, as I'm still new to the Liberation Army I still need to build my repertoire and convince everyone that I can be trusted. I think that's better suited here than in Falena."

"Wait," Daunte said, looking towards Caesar. "Reis. Did she say she was from Falena?"

"She is," Oboro said bluntly.

"Then why don't we bring her along with us?"

"That should work," Caesar said, shrugging. "So we have our entourage. Our boat is being prepared as we speak, so let's hurry and get ready."

* * *

To Daunte's surprise, Reis wasn't particularly enthusiastic about going to Falena. However, she _did_ get excited about the prospect of being in the Sun Palace and voiced no further complaints. Daunte did not know how long they would be gone so he only packed a week's worth of clothes. Once he finished packing he counted out the bits he had. Then he remembered that Falena had a different currency.

 _Right. Well, off to see Eliasen._

Daunte gathered his entourage, but before leaving the main building he stopped by to see Viki. "Would you be able to teleport us to Sol-Falena?"

To his surprise, Viki shook her head sadly at him. "My Blinking Rune doesn't have the power to travel large distances. It's only capable of teleporting you within a country's borders." Daunte didn't quite understand the logic of that—after all, Viki had teleported _into_ Nagarea from outside the country, right? So why couldn't the Rune simply teleport them outside of the country?

 _But…she DOES seem to have a pretty poor grasp of what her Rune is capable of. She doesn't seem to have full control of it, and where it can take her—and us. So maybe I should play it safe and not risk being teleported somewhere I don't know._

Daunte took his entourage towards the southwest building. Eliasen's shop was in one of the two large rooms on the second floor, and greeted the group warmly. Daunte was positively stunned to find that his currency conversion shop was filled with sacks of Potch that rose straight to the ceiling. Daunte stared at this pile, absolutely stunned, for several minutes in silence. _What? How…Where did he get all this Potch? I'm pretty sure this wasn't in his wagon!_

"I've heard that you all are traveling to Falena," Eliasen greeted them. "I will be more than happy to convert your bits into Potch. When you return, I'll convert it back to bits. But remember—10 bits equals 1 Potch."

"R-Right," Daunte said, hurrying over to his counter. He pulled out his wallet and emptied his pockets. "I'll convert everything I have into Potch."

"Are you sure, my Lord?"

"Yes. I'll just convert it back when I come back." He emptied the contents of his wallet onto the counter. Eliasen counted out and the total came to 50,000 bits. Daunte's heart sank when Eliasen counted out exactly 5,000 Potch for him, but he forced a smile at the older man. "Thank you."

Everyone else got their currency converted as well and they left the conversion shop. Daunte's unease at his savings amounting to a meager amount in Potch disappeared slightly however when he saw how excited Arin was for the trip. _Well…I'll try to make the most of this. And with any luck I won't absolutely blow it._

Most of the Army and the healthier children from the Dark Chasm had come out to say goodbye to them. They were aware that the purpose of the trip was to ask Falena to take them in. Daunte saw that many of the children were very apprehensive, but he also saw a few of them look angry. He knew what this had to look like—that it looked like he was abandoning them.

 _But I'm not capable, at least at this given time, of giving them the help that they need. If Falena agrees to take them in, I know that they can give them the help that I can't provide to them._

"Right," Caesar said, looking out over the Army. "As Viki cannot teleport us directly outside of Nagarea, we're going to take a ship up the underground cavern towards the Northern Wharf. We'll send word about how our conference went with the Queen." He looked to Daunte. "Anything else, my Lord?"

Daunte then realized that with both Caesar and his departure they did not have a leader to oversee the Army while they were gone. He knew he would have to assign someone. He thought of assigning Keiran, as it would no doubt show everyone that his defection to the Liberation Army was sincere, but he also knew that there was a chance that no one would follow his orders. No…he needed long-time veterans of the Army to maintain the Army in their absence.

 _But I don't want to play favorites. Who should I choose?_

After deliberating it for a long moment, he nodded. "While we're gone, I'm leaving both Varnaz and Gunther in charge. In the event of an emergency, follow their orders as you would follow mine."

The Army shouted their acknowledgements, but both men in question looked stunned. Daunte knew that he was taking a risk leaving them _both_ in charge, considering they still did not necessarily get along. But at the same time though, Daunte hoped that this experience would allow them to settle their differences.

 _And they will do what's best for the Army._

"You."

Several people shrieked in alarm when Yuber suddenly appeared beside Daunte. Arin cried out and clung to Daunte's waist. It took every ounce of willpower for Daunte to not flinch at his sudden arrival, and to meet his cold gaze unflinchingly. "Yes, Yuber?" Daunte asked him.

"It is not in my nature to stand idle," Yuber told him. "And it is not wise of you to leave me behind. Without you around to give me orders, I may be prone to act…impulsively."

Daunte recognized the threat in words, even if his tone did not sound threatening. He squared his shoulders and looked Yuber right in his unfeeling, heterochromatic eyes. "Then here's my order for you—while I'm gone, you're going to defend every member of this Army with your life. If there is a threat to any of the men, women, and children who serve under me, you will defend them from it. Do I make myself clear?" he made sure to use a sharp and commanding tone of voice.

Yuber stared back at him in silence. The tension was thick in the air; it made everyone on edge. Finally, Yuber leaned his head back slightly. "Fine." And just as quickly, he was gone.

All around Daunte people let out loud sighs of relief. Daunte was also relieved but he kept a cool mask on as he turned to Caesar. "Are we ready to leave?"

"Whenever you are, my Lord," Caesar told him.

They headed down into the underground cavern while the Army above them cheered and shouted goodbyes. A large boat was waiting for them, as was a soldier with a Water Rune. Once they were loaded onto the boat they took off sailing into the darkness of the cavern. Daunte saw torches that were hanging on the walls on either side of them, and he was glad that his Army had lit the way up the tunnel. Even though the cavern was wide, he felt a little claustrophobic being down there.

The tunnel was long and winding, with no branching paths. Daunte thought it was odd that the water was flowing north, as opposed to south, but it did make sailing that much easier. But it was still a boat ride that lasted for several hours. But they encountered no monsters down in the cave, so it made the trip that much more leisurely.

By the time they exited the cavern and reached the Northern Wharf, it was already dusk Daunte was stunned that their travel had taken so much time, and he was mindful of the fact that their assembly with the Queen was less than a day away. Remembering how long it'd taken them to sail up the coast, it was agreed upon that they not stop for breaks unless absolutely necessary and keep sailing. The soldier operating the Water Rune was thankfully understanding.

They were sailing up and away from the Northern Wharf and northeast towards Falena when it happened. Daunte was idly watching sun set on the ocean's horizon when a bright light rose high into the air. It startled him and he sat up. He seeing a light like that before, when they had gotten back to Nagarea from Falena, though he'd had an argument with Bearyl after seeing the light and so hadn't been able to ask about it. He grabbed Caesar's arm and pointed. "What is that?"

Caesar watched the light descend over the water for a moment before shrugging. "That's a rune cannon."

"W-What?!" Reis exclaimed, immediately perking up.

"I'm joking," Caesar said blandly. The researcher immediately deflated at each this. "Actually, that light is coming from the direction of a small island due north of Nagarea. There are rumors that an inventor lives there. He fled Nagarea to avoid being arrested for his "unlawful experiments"." His fingers wiggled in quotations marks as he said this. "So the inventor moved to an uninhabited island and does his work there instead."

"D-Do you think he would be interested in joining us?" Roen asked.

"Another time, I think," Caesar said. "For right now, let's focus on Falena."

"I agree," Daunte said.

They sailed all night towards Falena, though they drifted for a few hours while they allowed the soldier to rest. Dawn was starting to break on the sky when Daunte recognized the coastline of Falena and they turned inland and followed up the river.

"By Nagar, look at this place!" Felicity shouted with amazement at the greenery of their environment. "Falena surely has a lot more trees than Nagarea does!"

"Daunte, look!" Arin said, leaning over the side of the boat to look into the water. "Look at how clean this water is! I can see straight through to the bottom!"

"This is the Feitas River," Oboro said. "It runs to every corner of Falena. We're quite proud of it, you know."

"It does look a lot like Golden River," Roen observed.

It had turned into morning when Daunte recognized a wide space of water that resembled a small lake. He'd remembered that this was where the Falenan boats had met them to escort them to Sol-Falena. Sure enough… "Halt!"

Daunte stood to attention as the familiar, larger ships surrounded them slightly. "Greetings!" he called up to them.

"Oh!" the captain at one of the ships shouted. "It's _you_!"

"We from the Hersheville Naval Base welcome you back to the Queendom of Falena, Lord Daunte!" another shouted down to them.

 _Eh? This…is a different reception than we got before._ He looked at Caesar, but the strategist shrugged.

"Please, allow us to escort you straight to Sol-Falena," the first captain shouted. "We'll get you there quickly and safely!"

"They're certainly friendly," Felicity said.

"Why would they be?" Oboro asked.

"They treated us with a little more…suspicion the last time we were here," Daunte said.

"Well, we're here with you," Shou said. "Not to mention the fact that they already know who you are. It'd be stupid to treat you with hostility, right?"

"Maybe it's because you're the leader now, Daunte?" Arin asked, looking at him. "They know they can trust you!"

"…Sure, let's go with that," Shou muttered.

Their boat was escorted alongside the other boats towards Sol-Falena. Despite the warmer welcome (and the fact that the soldiers recognized Daunte on sight) he was still nervous about how this assembly was going to go. Maybe Queen Lymsleia would accept their proposal, but…what if she thought their proposal was a manipulation tactic?

 _I don't want to manipulate them into being my allies. I do want them to care for the children of the Dark Chasm. But I…after how Bearyl Lutis behaved the last time we were here, I wouldn't be surprised if they did sincerely believe I was trying to manipulate them._

He felt a tug on his hand, and he looked towards Arin. "Are you okay?"

"I…" Arin gulped before continuing. "I-I'm sorry, Big Brother."

Daunte blinked. "Why?"

"I was angry with you. I thought, when you decided to send the children of the Dark Chasm here, that you were ditching them. But…look at this place!" he gestured to their surroundings. "This place is beautiful! And the air feels good here too! I get it now! I get why you want to send the children here! They'll definitely recover a lot quicker here than at our headquarters!"

"Well let's not get ahead of ourselves yet," Caesar said. "We still need to convince the Queen to take the children in."

"I agree with Arin," Roen said. He was positively grinning. "I was worried before, but I think sending them here would help them get better a lot faster!"

"If the Queen will _agree_ to take in over 300 injured and malnourished kids," Reis muttered.

It was late morning, almost noon, when they finally arrived in Sol-Falena. Arin gasped aloud when he saw the massive capital city, and Daunte himself was overwhelmed when he saw the city, even though he'd seen it previously. Along the docks he saw the dragon horses and he tensed reflexively. Arin even hid his face in Daunte's arm. Roen, however, looked delighted to the see the dragon horses and waved to them.

They reached the main docks, and Daunte recognized Cius waiting for them there. He slowly stood up as their boat came to a stop alongside the dock. Falena's soldiers stood to attention, but Cius broke away from them and hurried towards Daunte and his entourage. As Daunte climbed out of the boat, Cius seized his hand and shook it vigorously. "Daunte—excuse me, Lord Daunte! Welcome back to Sol-Falena! And…" he looked at the rest of the group and his eyes went wide. "Oboro! A-And Shou and Reis! You all joined the Liberation Army, too?!"

"Long time no see," Oboro greeted him. "W—"

"Enough," Shou interrupted, jumping out of the boat. "Are they here?"

"O-Oh, are you guys the reason why the Oboro Detective Agencies boats are parked on the other side of the harbor?" Cius wondered out loud. "It's been years since I've seen _all_ the boats together, but they all just suddenly arrived this morning! All five of them!"

"Good luck, my Lord," Shou told Daunte. He then grabbed Oboro roughly by his arm. "Let's go."

"Shou, there's really no need for—"

" _Let's go_ ," Shou said in a harsher tone and dragged the other man away.

"Oh, drat!" Cius sighed, slapping a hand over his eyes. "Per protocol I should've confiscated their weapons!"

"But you know them," Reis pointed out to him. "Didn't Oboro fight with you guys during the Civil War? Why would you confiscate his weapon—if he had any?"

Cius shook his head and looked to Daunte. "Thank you for arriving early, Lord Daunte. We sent word ahead to the Sun Palace that you have arrived, but as you're undoubtedly aware your assembly with the Queen is an hour away."

"I understand," Daunte said. "Would it be all right if we look around the city?"

"Oh, yes!" Felicity gushed. "I want to see Sol-Falena!"

"Daunte, can we go to the shop where you got me that figurine?" Arin asked eagerly, tugging on Daunte's hand. "Pretty please?"

Daunte shrugged and smiled at him. "Sure, why not?"

"I definitely need to stretch my legs," Caesar said, rubbing at one calf.

"I can't believe I have to waste an hour before getting into the Sun Palace," Reis grumbled.

"I'll be your escort," Cius told them. "But before we go any further, please hand over your weapons. They will be returned to you when you are ready to depart the Queendom."

The group handed over their weapons without fuss. Cius nodded and grinned at them. "I'll take you all into the market. We'll stop by Mr. Mooney's shop first and foremost. Once we're about fifteen minutes before the start of the assembly, I'll escort you all to the Sun Palace."

Roen wanted to stay down at the docks with the dragon horses, but he didn't want to lose track of the group and reluctantly followed them. Daunte was a little amused by it (though he hoped Roen didn't give in to temptation to bring an egg back with them because he sincerely doubted Sharon had experience with dragon _horses_ ).

As it was now the afternoon, the market of Sol-Falena was crammed with people. Most everyone was in high spirits, and nobody treated them with suspicion. On the opposite side of the city, he _did_ see five unique boats docked and there was a group of people wearing the same uniform that Shou wore. He couldn't see Shou or Oboro and decided not to give it another thought as Cius led them into Mooney's shop.

"Oh, Cius!" Mooney waved to them from behind the counter. "You've brought me quite a few customers! And—oh! I know you!" he pointed to Daunte. "So these are the dignitaries from Nagarea?"

"Yes," Cius said. "Right now they're shopping before the assembly. T—"

"I don't believe it!" Caesar suddenly shouted. He was hovering over the case Daunte remembered contained figurines of heroes from the Second Fire Bringer War. He looked up and stared stunned at Mooney. "That's _me_! _I'm_ in this case! Who are you?! How did you get my likeness so accurately?!"

"Oh, so you're a hero of the Second Fire Bringer War?" Mooney asked. He came out from behind the counter and approached Caesar. He looked at him closely and yelped. "O-Oh my goodness! You're Caesar Silverberg! _The_ Caesar Silverberg!" He grasped Caesar's hand and shook it. "It's an honor to meet you!"

"Y-You're only charging _500 Potch_ for my figurine," Caesar said. "That's insulting, considering I was the _Chief Strategist_ during this war! I mean, you've got Nadir's figurine here at 2,000 Potch! All he did was put on these crazy plays!"

Mooney flinched and laughed feebly. "Ah…you see; these figurines don't sell as well here in Falena. Nadir is quite renowned for—"

"He once put on a rendition of Romeo and Juliet and casted a MAN play Juliet!" Caesar snapped. Daunte burst into laughter, unable to help himself, and the rest of the group soon followed.

Mooney shifted uncomfortably where he stood. "Since this is _you_ we're talking about; you can have your figurine on the house."

Caesar shook his head furiously. "No! I'll pay full-price for _my_ figurine!" he dug into his pocket angrily.

"Daunte, look!" Arin exclaimed. He was standing at the case in the center of the room. Daunte remembered that these were the best sellers. It was five figurines in a row, portraying five teenage boys. It was strange…staring at them, Daunte felt a kinship to them. Even though they were simply figurines in a case.

"Oh, we have a special on those five," Mooney said. He took Caesar's figurine (and money) behind the counter. He deposited the Potch into the cash register and wrapped the figurine. "Those are the Tenkai Stars of each of the five wars featured in this shop. Prince Freyjadour is the last one in the row."

Daunte's head snapped up, and he heard Arin gasp. _Tenkai Star? Leknaat…she said_ _ **I**_ _was the Tenkai Star. So I'm not the only one? These five are also part of the Tenkai Star?_ He looked back down into the case.

"Oh, that's Lord Thomas!" Caesar said, pointing to the figurine in the middle of the five. "He didn't necessarily lead the Army, but it _was_ his castle we used as our headquarters."

"They generally run for 10,000 Potch apiece, but since they're on special they're only 1,000 Potch apiece," Mooney said. "I would highly recommend buying Prince Freyjadour's figurine as quick as possible. His always sells out the fastest."

"He's right," Cius said, looking at Daunte. "I've seen people who already own Prince Freyjadour's figurine come back just to buy another."

Arin was looking at all five of them with awe. Daunte counted his money and remembered that he had converted it, and he had exactly 5,000 Potch. He nodded and looked up at Mooney. "I'll take all five of them."

"Really?!" Arin exclaimed happily.

"Really?" Reis asked in a dull voice.

"That…That is most kind of you," Mooney said.

Daunte shrugged. "They're heroes after all. And you like them, right Arin?"

Arin nodded happily and Daunte nodded to Mooney. Since they were the Tenkai Star, just like him, he definitely wanted to have them. And Arin wanted them anyway, so that was another incentive. Even if it would leave him with an empty wallet. "So, 5,000 Potch right?"

* * *

"Spending all of your money on toys," Reis huffed, shaking her head as they left the shop. "You really are a child, aren't you?"

Daunte shrugged. "I'm a teenager, actually."

"Daunte, thank you so _much_!" Arin was positively gushing, hugging all five figurines to his chest. "Now I have six of these!"

"Seven," Caesar said, shoving his own figurine into Arin's overcrowded arms.

"Wait, but that's _your_ figurine isn't it?" Cius asked him.

"What am I going to do with it?" Caesar asked, shrugging. "It was an impulse buy. Perhaps next time he'll charge over 1,000 Potch for it.

"But that's a lot of figurines he makes, isn't it?" Roen wondered. "I mean, it's heroes for five wars right? It'd be impossible to have the complete sets!"

Daunte shrugged. "We're off to a pretty good start."

"We still have some time," Cius told them. "Why don't I take you to our trade shop?"

Daunte nodded. "Thank you."

They followed Cius towards the shop in question. Arin trailed behind them, looking at each of the figurines he held. He looked at Caesar. "Hey, Caesar?"

"What is it?"

"Why is Lord Thomas so much smaller than everyone else?"

Caesar paused at hearing this, and then burst into laughter.


	36. Chapter Four: Part Seven

Part VII

The last time they were in Sol-Falena they were taken straight to the Parliament building. But when it came time to be fifteen minutes before their audience with Queen Lymsleia, they were escorted directly into the Sun Palace. It was surreal; the palace was larger than life, possibly bigger than even the Grand Citadel of Mlkwt Alsmwat. There were multiple guards on duty as they walked across the bridge and entered through the giant front doors. They passed through an entryway before reaching the main entrance hall.

The surroundings were immediately familiar to Daunte and he paused in his tracks. Without any of the tables and the decorations the entrance hall looked much larger. But…But this had been the place where Archana had her wedding reception with her husband. This was where they were poisoned. He looked to his left and even saw the place on the floor where Darrick and Archana had collapsed.

"Daunte?" Arin looked up at him. "Are you all right?"

Daunte quickly shook his head. "Y-Yes, I'm fine."

"You all will be announced in shortly," Cius told them. "In the meantime, please wait out here. If you'll excuse me, I must return to work."

"Thank you for the escort," Caesar told him.

"Yes, thank you," Daunte added.

Cius nodded. "You're welcome."

Cius took his leave, and the group took the opportunity to look at their surroundings. Almost everyone was in awe, including Caesar. "I can see my reflection in the floor," he said idly. He laughed a little. "This reminds me of the palace in Gregminster…"

Daunte tried to shake the unease of being in the main hall and leaned his right hand against the wall. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. _Get yourself together, Daunte. You'll need to have a clear head when you present yourself before Queen Lymsleia._

The Rune of Restoration then suddenly glowed, and Daunte shouted and retracted his hand. _No, not now!_ he clutched his hand to his chest and closed his eyes.

"See? Didn't I tell you this looks much better?"

Daunte opened his eyes and looked to his left. And gaped.

"Oh, I love it when a plan comes together!" a teenaged girl declared, laughing heartily. She had long silver hair that was tied in two long braids. She wiped at her forehead, which left an emerald green smear. "Didn't I say that the color was perfect?"

There was emerald green paint _everywhere_. It stretched nearly across the length of the wall and puddles of paint were all over the floor. The oldest girl stood there, covered in paint but admiring her "work". A younger teenage girl with silver hair was pressing her hands in the puddles and slapping handprints on the wall. A little black-haired boy and tawny-haired girl were giggling and flicking wet paint brushes at each other. And an even young boy and girl, both with dark hair, were painting the walls with paintbrushes so big that they had to hold them in both hands. Every single one of them was covered in green paint. Behind them stood two maids, who looked very distressed but clearly were too afraid to stop the group from doing what they were doing.

" _Remember when she got the bright idea to paint the main hall of the Sun Palace_ _ **emerald green**_ _?"_

Daunte knew then what this memory detailed and burst into loud laughter.

"Once we're finished with these walls, then we need to move on to the ceiling!" Archana declared. She struck a triumphant pose and pointed upwards. "Yes—Yes, it will be perfect!"

"Cousin Archana, how are we going to reach the ceiling?" Surya looked up from flicking his paintbrush at Mokuren. Mokuren took the opportunity to flick her brush at him, and a glob of green paint hit his cheek.

"We'll need much larger paintbrushes," Kaylani said with total seriousness.

"M-Maybe we should stand on each other's shoulders to reach the ceiling!" Freyr spoke up.

"Archana, why are _we_ painting the entrance hall?" Farrin spoke up.

"Aren't you having fun?" Archana asked her. Farrin gave this a lot of thought and nodded enthusiastically. "Then that's what counts!"

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

Daunte jumped violently at this shriek of horror. The sound startled the younger royals as well, with the exception of Archana. No, she didn't even falter as she turned around. "Ah, Aunt Lym! You're just in time!"

Daunte slowly turned. He saw Queen Lymsleia standing there, and she was breathing heavily with rage. Behind Lymsleia he could see Freyjadour and Lyon hurrying forward. Both of them looked horrified. Daunte also saw Shoon emerge from one of the doors on the side, and the ridiculous sight in front of him made him bark with laughter briefly before he slapped a hand over his mouth.

"Archana, you—" Lymsleia was gesturing wildly with her hands. Her face was turning red. " _What have you done_?!"

The younger children looked terrified by her anger, but Archana didn't even flinch. "Oh, don't be upset Aunt Lym!" she almost reached for Lymsleia, but quickly retracted her hands when she saw they were covered in paint. "This is…um…uh…"

"Lady Archana!" Lyon quickly spoke up, walking forward to stand at Lymsleia's side. "This behavior from someone your age is most disgraceful! We will notify your parents at once!"

"Are you kidding?!" Lymsleia snapped at Lyon. "Aunt Haswar will think this is _funny_!" she turned her glare back to Archana. "Why have you done th—STOP PAINTING THE WALLS!" she snapped at Surya and Mokuren, who _had_ returned to painting the walls.

"Please don't yell at them," Archana said in a pleading tone, though Daunte could see by her expression that she still thought all of this was amusing. "If you must yell at someone, Aunt Lym, please yell at me."

"I _am_ yelling at you!" Lymsleia bellowed out. "This was clearly YOUR idea! Why have you done this?!"

"Well…don't you like the color?" she gestured to the wall. "It complements the lighting in the room."

"You—"

"Your Majesty!"

Daunte jumped as the doors leading to the entryway burst open and four people rushed inside. One was an older man and the other three were teenage boys. His brow rose when he realized all four of them had their swords drawn. "We heard you scream! We…" the older man at the front paused when he saw the royals covered in paint. The man looked very familiar to Daunte…

"General Dinn, sorry to concern you," Lyon told the man. "But as you can see, Her Majesty is not in any danger. Are you visiting Sol-Falena with your sons?"

"Yes, you remember them right, Lady Lyon?" Dinn sheathed his sword and gestured to the teenagers behind him. "My firstborn Israfil, my second-born Darian, and my fifth-born Kir." He gestured to each boy in kind but Daunte's eyes widened. _Fifth-born? Just how many children does he have?!_

But at least he knew why the man looked familiar; it was Israfil's father. The teenaged Israfil was looking at his surroundings with obvious shock.

"Evil spirits!" Archana suddenly shouted, startling everyone except for Lymsleia. "We did this to ward off evil spirits!"

"Right!" Kaylani perked up, coming to stand beside her older sister. "Green is a color that wards off evil spirits!"

Lymsleia gave them both a hard look. "And since when does the Sun Palace have evil spirits?!"

"Oh, it doesn't hurt to be cautious!" Archana said. She moved down the length of the wall. "The protection of the Sun Rune is hardly enough! With the green paint, there will never be a threat to us aga—AUGH!" she promptly skidded in a large puddle of paint and slipped, falling flat on her back right in the middle of the puddle.

"Cousin Archana!" Surya rushed to her side. "Are you okay?!"

But Archana was laughing hysterically as she sat up. Her entire back was now covered in paint, as was three-quarters of her silver hair. "Oops!"

Daunte felt something grab his arm. "My Lord."

Daunte blinked, and just as quickly the memory was gone. He looked to his right and saw Caesar. "Are you okay?"

Daunte nodded. "Y-Yes, I'm fine. My Rune was…" He withdrew his hand from the wall. "Acting funny." It had been a memory that Surya, Mokuren, and Israfil had discussed on their way to the Great Cistern. It was hard to believe that the bubbly teenage girl who had the utterly insane idea to paint the walls green was the same subdued woman who was still deep in mourning.

 _Surya said he missed that Archana. Now I've seen just how different she really was back then._

"Well, better now than in front of the Queen," Caesar said lightly.

"Where did Reis go?" Roen asked suddenly. Daunte realized that indeed the researcher had left.

"She probably went to find the Sun Rune," Caesar said dismissively. "It's okay. She didn't agree to come with us to participate in this audience anyway."

"Dignitaries of Nagarea!" the group jumped as a clerk emerged from the throne room. "Her Majesty will see you now!"

"This is it," Caesar told them. "Lord Daunte, please walk at the front of the group. We'll follow behind you."

Daunte nodded and took Arin by the hand. He did several breathing exercises as they walked towards the throne room, wanting to keep the outward appearance of calm. He knew he had to be careful. Perhaps the Falenas royal family still owed him, but he knew if he said the wrong word or acted the wrong way like Bearyl had, that they would lose any political advantage with Falena.

 _Just keep calm and be yourself, Daunte._

"Presenting Lord Commander Daunte! Chief Strategist Caesar Silverberg! And other representatives of the Theocracy of Nagarea's Liberation Army!" was their formal introduction into the throne room.

Daunte did not pause in his steps, but he was surprised by what he saw. On the dais before him he saw Queen Lymsleia seated on a large throne. Crowned Princess Farrin was seated in a smaller throne beside her. Next to Lymsleia stood Freyjadour, and next to Farrin stood Shoon. On both sides of the dais stood the other members of the Falenas royal family—Haswar, Craig, Freyr, Signe, Silvano, and Kaylani holding her infant son. Standing to attention on either side of the carpet around them were several Queen's Knights. At the front of the line stood Surya, who grinned at him and nodded. Mokuren stood behind Surya and waved.

Daunte however noticed tha Archana was not present along with her family. _I hope she's doing okay._

Lymsleia and Farrin stood up from their thrones once they got close enough to the dais. Daunte did a full bow before them, and the others in his group followed suit. He almost began speaking, but realized it would be more proper to wait for Lymsleia to speak and remained silent.

"Dignitaries of Nagarea, welcome back to Sol-Falena," Lymsleia greeted them. "How was your trip here?"

"We experienced no difficulties and we received a respectful welcome upon our arrival," Daunt said, straightening. "Thank you for the invitation."

"Thank you for your courteous offer," Lymsleia said to him. "I regret that our previous meeting did not have a beneficial outcome for your Army. However, I see that the Liberation Army has elected _you_ as their leader. After everything you have done for my family, Lord Daunte, I'm very reassured by the direction your Army is going in."

To Daunte's right, a female Queen's Knight in her late forties suddenly burst into hysterical giggles. Seeming to forget her position, she suddenly stepped forward and smiled impishly. "My oh my oh my! What a treat this is to finally meet the Princess's fiancé!"

Farrin immediately blushed, and the entire throne room erupted into laughter. "Miakis, _stop_!" the Crowned Princess exclaimed.

"Oh, don't be so embarrassed Princess! Did you not publicly declare your intentions for this young man? Hmmm?"

"Stop talking to me like I'm a child!" Farrin stomped her feet in frustration.

"Brother!" Arin shouted. He was glaring up at Daunte. "You're engaged to a _princess_?! Why didn't you tell me?!"

Daunte stared blankly at Arin as the laughter rose in volume around them. Even Roen and Felicity were in stitches. Thankfully, Queen Lymsleia brought everyone back down to earth. "Ah, so this is Arin? Your younger brother, Lord Daunte?"

"Y-Yes, your Majesty," Daunte stammered, looking back up at her.

"Arin," Lymsleia said, addressing the child directly. "You must be fond of your older brother."

"Oh, yes I am!" Arin said, immediately perking up. "He's the best big brother in the world! He's done so much to protect me and to make me well again! He's been hurt so badly to protect me, but he's never complained! He's never blamed me for anything! I don't know how I'll ever repay him!"

"Arin, you don't _have_ to repay me," Daunte interjected, flushing slightly. "You're alive and you're healthy. That's all that matters to me."

"Lord Daunte mentioned you quite a bit when he was last here," Lymsleia said, still addressing Arin. "And Surya has also spoken of you. I'm glad to meet you when you're much better."

Arin nodded happily. "I'm fine! And it's thanks to my brother!"

Lymsleia was smiling brightly as she straightened. "Big brothers really are wonderful, aren't they?" out of the corner of his eye, Daunte saw Freyjadour flush slightly. He remembered Surya telling him how Freyjadour had started a civil war in Falena to rescue Lymsleia from usurpers. He realized then that Lymsleia was relating to Arin from her own experiences and his spirits lifted considerably. _This audience is off to a very good start._

"But let us turn to the purpose of your arrival here," Lymsleia said, turning her gaze towards Daunte. "After we received your correspondence Lord Daunte, the Parliament voted to leave any decisions related to Nagarea to my judgment." She gestured forward. "The floor is your, Lord Daunte."

Daunte swallowed thickly. The was the moment of truth. Despite the more positive reception than what they'd received before, he knew he still had to be careful about what he said and how he presented himself. Daunte knew his own intentions were sincere, but he also knew that if Queen Lymsleia felt that he was trying to manipulate her that she would reject him.

 _I'll just speak from my heart, then._

"Queen Lymsleia," Daunte began, holding her gaze with his own. "When I was last here, I spoke to you about our imprisonment in the Dark Chasm. And you saw what…" his mangled fingers twitched slightly and he shook his head. "I'm happy to report to you that we have liberated that place. It is no longer in operation."

"Good!" Surya burst out. Daunte looked at him. "I'm glad to see that the Liberation Army is finally living up to the _liberation_ part of its name!"

"Surya," Lyon scolded him softly. Surya immediately clammed up.

"The children are freed," Daunte continued, looking back at Lymsleia. "However, my Army lacks the resources to give them the care they need. We only have two doctors, and they have been overwhelmed with the workload of overseeing their health. My soldiers have also have had to divert their time to take care of them. I feel it's my duty to make sure they all become well again, however the Liberation Army is currently fledgling. We have gotten new recruits, but as things stand I cannot care for the children and care for my soldiers at the same time. I…" Daunte swallowed again. This was much more difficult than he'd imagined it would be. But he took a deep breath and let it out slowly before finishing. "We have come here to ask Falena for formal assistance in taking in the refugees of the Dark Chasm."

The room was silent. Everyone waited with abated breath for Lymsleia's response. Finally, she said, "How many soldiers are under your command?"

"We currently have approximately 3,500 soldiers," Caesar spoke up. "By comparison, the Theocracy has well over 200,000 soldiers."

"And how many refugees do you have?"

Daunte himself wanted to answer this question. "Three hundred and thirteen. Almost two-thirds of them are still suffering from malnutrition. And recently I was notified by Dr. Yulin, the Army's chief surgeon, that almost thirty a…" he had to pause again before speaking. "Twenty-seven of the children are so weak that they're barely conscious most of the time. There is not one child who hasn't broken at least one bone once, and barely a quarter of the children are making a full recovery."

Murmurs of disbelief and horror filled the room but Lymsleia raised her hand for silence. "I don't doubt your story, Lord Daunte. Surya has reported to me what he himself witnessed in the Dark Chasm during _his_ stay there. But I must say that your request for us to take in three hundred and thirteen children is quite a heavy request."

"I know," Daunte said softly. "But we have tried to care for them and we have not been successful. It is my wish by coming here that I can convince you to provide them with assistance."

"Is this the only reason for your visit?" Lymsleia asked him. "You're not asking to enter in to a formal alliance with us?"

"As beneficial as that would be, my Lord's primary concern is the care for those children," Caesar said. "We lack the resources to give them the care they need. However, Your Majesty, the Queendom of Falena has bountiful resources that would allow for them all to make a full recovery. Caring for these children is my Lord's primary concern. Having them here will also allow for us to focus on building our Army."

"If I may speak?" Shoon asked suddenly, stepping forward.

"Of course," Lymsleia told her husband.

Shoon gave Daunte a leveling look. "How do we know that this proposal for us to take in refugees isn't just a smokescreen for you to milk sympathy points from us to guilt us into an alliance?"

Daunte expected this question, but he didn't expect the anger to surge through him. "I don't _need_ sympathy points," he snapped at the Prince Consort. "I think I've already proven myself to most everyone in this room! All I care about is getting help for my friends! They suffered so greatly and even now, with their freedom, they _continue_ to suffer! I've tried so hard to make things easier for them, but nothing that we've done has given them what they needed! It shames me to stand here begging for help because deep down I feel like I'm casting them out! But they're not getting better, and I _want_ them to get better!" he looked back at Lymsleia. "If you don't want to enter in to an alliance with us, that's fine. We didn't exactly inspire confidence the last time we were here. But please— _please_ don't think I'm here to manipulate you! I just want help for my friends! I've seen so many of them die already! I don't want any more of them to die!"

Once more the room fell silent from Daunte's outburst. He struggled to get his breathing under control but he also felt a little embarrassed. He hadn't meant to lose his temper like that, especially at the Queen's own husband. He looked at Arin, and his little brother looked a little afraid by his angry he was. Daunte forced himself to calm down and gave him a half-hug.

"I hope you have been paying attention, Caesar Silverberg," Lymsleia said suddenly.

Daunte's head snapped up and he looked at Lymsleia with alarm. Caesar stepped forward to stand at Daunte's side. "I have, You Majesty."

" _This_ is what defines a leader," Lymsleia said, gesturing to Daunte. "Having the presence to exude authority, but also knowing when to sacrifice your pride for the sake of the people who serve under you." She smiled at Farrin. "You chose well."

Farrin turned even darker red and Daunte let out the breath he'd been holding. _So…So I didn't blow it for us?_

"I hope you'll forgive me, Lord Daunte," Lymsleia said. "For I only told you a half-truth. When I said that Parliament left the matter of Nagarea to my judgment, that only applied to whether or not we would enter in to a formal alliance with you. Regarding the matter of the refugees, we had already voted in agreement to accept them."

Daunte's jaw dropped and he gaped at her. _Wait. Wait, wait, wait! They already decided BEFORE I came here to accept our refugees? Then why am I here?!_

"But despite knowing that you are a good man, I still wanted to observe you to see if you were being sincere in your intentions," Lymsleia continued. "You are quite a stoic young man, but I believe in how passionate you are to maintain the well-being of your allies."

"I agree as well," Shoon said, smiling at Daunte.

"I also believe that you did not come here to guilt me into pledging Falena to your cause," Lymsleia said. "There is still a lot of uncertainty. I know nothing of the topography of Nagarea, nor do I know what your political intentions are. However, I have decided that I _will_ pledge soldiers to you regardless."

"Really?!" Felicity cried out.

"Does this mean…?" Roen said.

Lymsleia came off the dais to stand directly before Daunte. "As the Queen of Falena, I hereby offer you allegiance. It's in our best interests that you succeed, and I fully believe that you _will_ succeed."

Daunte was stunned. Lymsleia had rejected Bearyl's offer for an alliance because she didn't believe he would be successful. And she didn't think he was organized or cared about the fate of his soldiers. Daunte obviously care, but…but in that moment he realized that he wasn't entire _sure_ of what was going to happen once they were victorious.

 _But she still believes in me regardless._

He bowed to her respectfully. "Thank you, Your Majesty."

"For the time being, I will lend you one thousand soldiers," Lymsleia said as he straightened. Daunte heard the door to the throne room open and turned. "Part of this group will be soldier's from Sable's Defense Force, led by General Israfil Raulbel."

"It would be my honor to join in an alliance with you," Israfil said. He saluted and smiled at Daunte. "It has been a long time, my Lord. I will do my absolute best to ensure that you succeed."

Daunte nodded and grinned at him. "Thank you, General."

"Another unit of soldiers will be led by Silvano," Lymsleia said. Silvano stepped forward and bowed.

A spike of shock shook Daunte and he frantically shook his head. "Y-You can't!"

Silvano paused. "I'm sorry?"

"Lady Kaylani just had a baby!" Daunte reminded him. "You're a new father! You can't leave your wife and son behind to fight for an Army in a foreign country!"

Silvano relaxed, and he smiled a little. "Your concern is flattering. But it's okay, Lord Daunte. I owe you everything, and I can do no better than to fight for you."

"But—"

"Lord Daunte, it's okay," Kaylani interjected, stepping forward. She cuddled her baby to her chest. "I understand what Silvano needs to do and I don't fault him for it. I believe he will do all he can to bring you victory."

Daunte felt very uncomfortable by this. There was a risk that Silvano might die if he were to charge with the Liberation Army. Just the thought of leaving Kaylani without her husband, and their son without a father, was very disconcerting. But he saw the determination in Silvano's expression, and the acceptance in Kaylani's, and Daunte reluctantly nodded. "Thank you, Silvano. I'm honored."

"Your Majesty."

Daunte looked over his shoulder. Surya broke line formation and moved to stand beside Daunte. He saluted his aunt. "Your Majesty, I request a leave of absence from my position as a Queen's Knight. I owe Lord Daunte my life, and I feel the only way I can repay him is that I serve him in the Liberation Army."

Daunte stared at him stunned, but Surya was staring at the Queen and did not glance his way. He looked at Lymsleia and saw that she was smiling.

"Oh…I don't know," Lymsleia said playfully. "I may be Queen, but _I'm_ not the Commander of the Queen's Knights. I will have to defer to _his_ judgment."

Lyon broke formation and walked over to Freyjadour's side. The pair spoke quietly amongst themselves for a few moments. Daunte did not hear anything they were saying. Finally, Freyjadour stepped off the dais and walked over to stand in front of his son. They stared at each other in silence for a moment before Freyjadour smiled and put a hand on Surya's shoulder. He looked to Daunte then and nodded in encouragement.

Daunte let out a short breath of relief, and Surya turned to face Daunte. "Then, from this moment forward I pledge myself to your cause."

"Thank you," Daunte said, and shook his hand. It felt surreal that Surya would be with them again after so long.

"I imagine you'll be joining him, Mokuren?" Lymsleia asked.

"Of course, your Majesty," Mokuren said, moving to stand beside her charge. "Where the Prince goes, I will go."

"Then it is settled!" Caesar announced, clapping his hands together. "We will send word back to Nagarea for them to prep the children for their arrival here!"

Daunte nodded and looked to Lymsleia once more. "Thank you for doing this. For the children and for providing us soldiers."

"You saved my family," Lymsleia responded. "This is the very least I can do for you."

* * *

Reis had still not reemerged when they left the throne room, but Daunte wasn't too concerned. Per Caesar's suggestion they were going to be staying in Sol-Falena until the children of the Dark Chasm arrived. Daunte looked forward to it.

 _We can finally do good by them!_

"Aunt Lym has asked the inn in town to provide accommodations," Surya told them. Daunte's entourage had been joined by Surya, Mokuren, and Israfil. Though Silvano was still joining them, he obviously wanted to spend as much time with Kaylani as possible before leaving. "She did say you could stay for free, but—"

"I don't mind paying full price for our rooms," Daunte said. Though his own wallet was empty after buying the figurines, Caesar had at least provided the necessary Potch for them to pay full price.

"That's awfully kind of you, my Lord," Mokuren said.

"Mokuren!"

The group stopped as an older gentleman in his fifties raced over to them. He was dressed in very aristocratic clothing, and his short tawny hair had lines of silver in it. He was wringing his hands slightly, and his expression was full of worry. "Mokuren," he said again.

"Father!" Mokuren greeted him, hurrying over to give him a hug. "Did you just arrive from Rainwall?"

"Yes, yes! I had heard that dignitaries from Nagarea were returning, so I knew that Prince Surya would want to join them. And by extension, _you_ would be joining them." the man perked up slightly when he saw Surya and bowed slightly. "Hello, Prince."

"Lord Euram, hello," Surya greeted him, but the other man shook his head. "Please don't address me with such a title. I no longer carry such a title, nor am I worthy of such a title."

 _Huh?_ Daunte wondered.

"Since you're here, I'll introduce you," Mokuren said. She turned to face Daunte. "Lord Daunte, this is my father Euram Barows. When you were last here you undoubtedly met my Aunt Luserina right?"

Daunte remembered the beautiful woman who spoke during the Parliament's assembly. He also remembered the strong family resemblance between Luserina and Mokuren. _So, Mokuren is her niece?_

"Luserina has done an excellent job in her position," Euram said. He laughed slightly. "She's always had a better head for politics than me. I just have a knack for making things worse."

"Father, _please_ don't talk about yourself like that," Mokuren said softly. But Euram shook his head. "It's the truth, my dear daughter."

"We're not leaving this moment," Surya said. "We'll be departing after the refugees arrive, so you'll have plenty of time to spend with Mokuren."

"No, she belongs at _your_ side, Prince Surya." Euram gave Mokuren another hug but looked at her closely. "Now don't forget, Mokuren. Don't forget your duty to the Royal Family. Don't forget that you must do everything you can to help and serve the Queen."

"I know, Mokuren said, nodding.

Daunte looked between them and frowned. _He…seems to be putting a lot of pressure on her, isn't he? What exactly is going on here?_

"Mokuren has never done anything to shame or embarrass me," Surya said, coming to stand at her side. "So you have nothing to fear, Euram."

Euram nodded and released her. "Then, I'll leave you to your work, my daughter."

"Right!" Mokuren said, striking a triumphant pose. The group continued on their way out of the Sun Palace, but Daunte looked over his shoulder. Euram was standing there watching them leave, and he had a look of pride on his face. But…But he also had a look of sadness in his expression.

Mokuren noticed this, and waited until they were in the entryway of the palace before speaking. "My father was a traitor."

Daunte gaped at her but she shrugged. "Or at least that's what he's always said. I've never really heard anyone say anything bad about him so I don't know for sure."

"Traitor or not, he's done everything he can to redeem himself," Surya added. "Father and Aunt Lym feel he's done enough, but he doesn't think so. He always carries this guilt around and…" he waved a dismissive hand. "Never mind. Let's keep moving."

They ventured outside. As they descended the front steps of the Sun Palace, Daunte noticed some slight movement underneath the first archway. Someone was sitting in the shadows of the archway. Daunte stopped on the last step, and Arin bumped into him from behind. "What's wrong?"

Before Daunte could speak though, the figure under the archway stood up and emerged into the sunlight. Daunte saw the mourning dress the person wore, and knew who it was before his eyes lifted to her face. Before he could say anything though, he felt Israfil step down to his left side. "Lady Archana."

" _Archana_?!" Silvano exclaimed, coming around to Daunte's right side. "So _that's_ where you've been! Kaylani's been looking all over for you!"

Archana smiled at him. "I know. I just wanted to avoid all the activity in the throne room."

Daunte noticed that she looked much better since her ordeal in Nagarea. Her forehead was no longer scorched, and her silver hair actually looked stylized with black ribbons and not disheveled. It was striking just how beautiful she was, but Daunte felt the natural emotional barrier around Archana, and he saw the lingering sadness in her eyes. Her official seven-year mourning period may have been drawing to a close, but it was still very clear to Daunte that the loss of her husband still had an impact on her.

"Well, you probably know," Surya said. "We've sworn our allegiance to Lord Daunte. Furthermore, our Aunt has given me, Silvano, and Israfil permission to join the Liberation Army."

Archana nodded. "I knew as much. After everything Lord Daunte has done for us, we could do no better than to give him our cooperation."

Daunte nodded. He wanted to ask her how she was doing, but then she stepped forwards towards him. Before he could react, the older princess suddenly enveloped him in a hug. He didn't know how to react, and he looked at the others awkwardly. Surya, however, didn't look surprised or embarrassed by Archana's public display of affection for a foreign dignitary.

"Thank you for saving my life."

Daunte looked at her. "Huh?"

Archana leaned back to look at him. "You saved my life, and I've never properly thanked you, or conveyed to you how grateful I am to you. I know that simple words don't mean much, but I _am_ thankful to you."

"I-It's okay," Daunte said. He gently shrugged her hug away. "I didn't save you expecting anything in return. I did it because it was the right thing to do."

"You're a good man, Daunte," Archana told him. "I was very shocked when I heard that the Liberation Army elected you as leader. I'd thought that a teenage boy such as yourself shouldn't have such a monumental burden. But I believe that you will be victorious. And I believe you will utilize our soldiers and the people I care about efficiently. I know I won't have to worry about their safety under your command."

"T…Thank you," Daunte said sincerely.

Archana drew back away from him. She then looked to Daunte's left, and moved to stand directly in front of Israfil. "General Israfil."

"M-My Lady," Israfil sputtered, and immediately saluted.

"I also haven't thanked you for saving my life."

Israfil blinked, and he looked stunned. "I…I really didn't do anything my Lady. Lord Daunte was the one who saved you."

"My memories of that day are still murky, but I remember that you stood at my side," Archana said. "And I remember feeling you trying to pull that awful Rune off my head. You tried to save me, not caring for your own safety, and I'm truly thankful to you for that." She curtsied before him. "I am in your debt."

"My Lady, you owe me nothing," Israfil insisted, raising his hands as he stepped towards her. "You're alive. That's all that matters to me." He choked, and Daunte saw the embarrassment flood his face as he realized what he'd just said.

"I'm still thankful to you," Archana said, seeming not to notice what he'd said. She straightened. "I will pray that you are victorious and that you return home safety."

"Thank you, my Lady. I will do everything in my power to keep alive and return home to Falena." Daunte could almost hear the silent finish to that sentence. _"Return to Falena…and you."_

"If you'll all excuse me, I'm going to go check on my sister and my nephew," Archana said, smiling at them. "I hope to see you all again before you leave."

"We're not leaving right this minute Archana," Surya said.

Archana grinned a little more cheekily and reached out to pinch his cheek. "I know, cousin."

Surya however didn't get irritated with the gesture. Daunte saw the flicker of hope in his expression as she walked past them and into the Sun Palace. Daunte knew that Surya was hoping that Archana would revert back to the eccentric girl Daunte had seen in his vision. But for the time being, she was still stoic…and still in mourning.

"I just want to say," Surya said suddenly, turning to address Arin. "What a relief it is to see you on your feet Arin. I'm glad you've made a full recovery."

"It's all because of my brother!" Arin said happily, gripping Daunte's hand.

"Arin, the Queen isn't here so you don't need to do any grandstanding," Felicity teased him.

"I'm not grandstanding!" Arin said indignantly. "I really mean it!"

The group burst into laughter, and even Daunte joined in. The tight knot of worry he'd been feeling was slowly unwinding, and he was starting to feel more and more optimistic. _I've secured the safety of the children of the Dark Chasm, and I have an alliance with Falena. Things are really starting to turn around. I'm really starting to think that we can win this war._


	37. Chapter Four: Part Eight

I'm sorry to say that after this chapter I'm going to be taking a break from this fanfic. I need to get several things in order in my life and I won't have time to write for a while. I should have the next chapter up around May 7th. I apologize in advance.

* * *

Part Eight

Two and a half days later, they received notice at Sol-Falena's inn that boats filled with children from the Dark Chasm would be arriving within an hour. Daunte and his group immediately converged upon the docks to welcome the children. Reis, after spending two straight days studying the Runes in the Sun Palace, even made an appearance (though she looked quite disinterested). Oboro and Shou also came down to meet the children. During their stay in the capital, Daunte had the opportunity to meet the other detectives who worked for Oboro's agency. He had learned that the business had started with just one boat four people—Oboro, a spiritedly woman named Fuyo, and Shou's parents—a stoic named Shigure, and a quiet woman named Sagiri. Now their agency consisted of five boats and nearly thirty detectives.

Sagiri unsettled Daunte, however. She seldom spoke except to tease her son, but during their first meeting Daunte often found the woman staring at him. Her facial expressions were very peculiar; she was constantly smiling. The smiles slipped from her face occasionally, but smiling seemed to be her default expression. But when she looked upon Daunte, well…Daunte could see _sadness_ in her eyes. Was she upset that Shou was fighting in an Army? It was another reminder to Daunte that each and every person who served under him had a family they'd left behind to fight in his name. Knowing that they would fight and die for him—and possibly leave their families behind—was an uncomfortable reality but Daunte knew that he couldn't ignore it.

 _I'll have to work much harder. To ensure that I don't lose so many soldiers._

Daunte also learned that one of the boats for the detective agency would be following them back to Nagarea, much to Oboro's chagrin. Neither Shigure nor Sagiri would be on the boat, and one hot-headed man named Raven kept loudly complaining about _not_ being able to do. But that meant more detectives to work for the Liberation Army, so Daunte didn't complain.

At the docks, Daunte squared his shoulders and kept his head held high as they waited for the boats. During his stay in Sol-Falena he'd been privy of the gossip of the capital and the opinions of the Falenan's about Queen Lymsleia agreeing to take in the refugees. He wasn't surprised to learn that the general census was very divided about the arrival of the children. Many did not trust the children and believed they were there with bad intentions. Others felt that their agreeing to take in three hundred and thirteen sickly children would put an unnecessary strain on the resources in the capital. Queen Lymsleia alleviated concerns by promising to spread the children out to different cities, and many cities like Rainwall, Doraat, and Lordlake agreed to take them in. Daunte understood the concerns of the citizens, but it still irritated him to see them so dismissive of the plight of the children.

 _Hopefully everything will work out._

Then the boats arrived Daunte counted sixteen of them, and he vaguely wondered where they'd gotten so many boats. People from all over the city came down to the docks to see the children, despite their own reservations about them. Queen Lymsleia also came down to the docks to welcome the children, but for security purposes was kept at a distance surrounded by Queen's Knights. Daunte quickly stepped forward with Caesar when the first boat docked, and when the first few children climbed out Daunte heard exclamations of shock from the Falenans behind him. They had clearly not been expecting to see the children in such terrible states.

A girl who looked to be about thirteen (Daunte felt guilty he didn't remember her name) didn't have the strength to climb out of the boat so Daunte and Roen carried her out of it. Healers rushed over with a stretcher and quickly carried her away. She wasn't the last child who was carried off in such a manner. Others who did climb out themselves didn't have the strength to stand and just sat down on the docks. All of them looked at their surroundings with bewilderment.

"This is different," Daunte heard one boy say. "I like it."

"I don't remember them looking this bad," Surya said softly.

More and more children docked and were escorted or carried away from the docks. The Falenans gossiped rather loudly, but Daunte was immensely relieved to hear that their attitudes had changed significantly.

"Who would _do_ this to children?!"

"Our prince was subjected to the same treatments?!"

"It was a mistake ignoring Nagarea for so long!"

"Good heavens! They look like what Lordlake citizens looked like almost thirty years ago!"

Hearing that puzzled Daunte, but he kept quiet about it as the children continued to arrive. People began breaking away from the crowds to give assistance. Even some of the Queen's Knights rushed forward to offer assistance. It took over three hours for all the boats to docks and all the children to be unloaded and given care. Some of them were so stunned by the outpouring of support they were receiving that they were openly weeping.

Once the last of the children had reached the city, Caesar pulled Daunte aside. "Let's make sure each child is seen to and then we must make preparations to return to work."

Daunte nodded. "I agree."

* * *

Once it had been deemed safe, Queen Lymsleia went out and greeted each of the children. The children had never met a monarch before, as the only form of government they had ever experienced was a Theocracy, so they mostly greeted her with indifference. Lymsleia didn't mind at all.

The children were still being organized to be transferred to different cities across Falena when Daunte and his group finally retired to the inn. Surya and Mokuren joined them for supper, and Daunte was also surprised to find a new addition to their party as well.

"I'll be going with you all to Nagarea," Freyr announced.

Surya and Mokuren gaped at him. Daunte looked between the two cousins, not knowing if he should accept the boy's offer. But Freyr produced an official letter and handed it to Daunte. "Here's my parent's approval on the matter. Dad said this would be a good way for me to repay you guys for saving me. And it would be a new experience for me since I aspire to become the Commander of the Queen's Knights."

"A-And Aunt Lym was okay with this?!" Surya sputtered.

Freyr shrugged. "Yeah. She's concerned for my safety but she gave her blessing."

The letter Daunte read said as much. He gave the letter to Caesar for his evaluation. The strategist read it in silence for a long moment before handing the letter to Mokuren. "Is this Queen Lymsleia's handwriting?"

Both Surya and Mokuren looked at the letter and Surya frowned. "…Yes."

Freyr grinned. "See?"

"But I'll still have a talk with Aunt Lym tomorrow just to be sure."

The smile quickly dropped from Freyr's face, but Arin perked up. "Well, the more the merrier!"

"It's great that we're going to be working with you again Surya," Roen added.

Surya smiled and relaxed a little. "Yeah, I agree. It still feels like yesterday since I was in Nagarea running all over the place with you guys."

They settled back into supper when Daunte remembered something. "Hey, Surya?"

"Yes, my Lord?"

Daunte felt odd to hear a prince defer to him, but he shook it off. "I heard someone compare the children to the people of Lordlake. What did that mean?"

Both Surya and Mokuren stiffened, but Freyr also looked curious. Surya rubbed at his nape awkwardly and looked away. "That…well, what happened at Lordlake isn't exactly something we're proud of."

"Was this an incident thirty years ago, where one of your towns was subjected to the power of the Sun Rune?" Caesar asked.

"How did you know about that?" Mokuren asked.

Caesar shrugged. "News of the incident reached Harmonia, you know. It's in textbooks about Falena at the Soledt Academy."

"The Sun Rune?" Felicity spoked up. "That's the Rune the High Clerics tried to ransom the royals for, isn't it?"

"Yeah, it's a powerful True Rune," Surya said grimly. "It's also very unstable. It needs the balance of both the Twilight Rune and the Dawn Rune or else the power will go out of control. Over thirty years ago the Dawn Rune was stolen and everyone thought that the town of Lordlake stole it. For a separate reason my grandmother wielded the Sun Rune, but without the Dawn Rune to balance the Sun Rune, it…" he shrugged stiffly. "Lordlake was razed. What was once a wealthy town with lush scenery and a beautiful lake turned into a barren wasteland. Then it turned out that Lordlake had absolutely _nothing_ to do with the theft of the Dawn Rune. They were framed."

"Yeah," Mokuren said in a quiet voice.

"However the town has made a full recovery," Surya quickly added. "If you were to go there now you would never have guessed what had happened there decades ago. But I hope you understand why Aunt Lym couldn't have simply handed the Sun Rune over to the Nagarean Theocracy. Not even for the sake of her children and kin. That's why we did everything in our power to save my cousins without giving in to the ransom."

" _Do you have any idea what will happen if the Sun Rune is separated from the Dawn Rune and the Twilight Rune again?! You would destroy your entire country! I'm not exaggerating, it_ _ **will**_ _happen!"_

Daunte remembered clearly that Lyon had said that. Now he could understand why they worked so hard and took so many risks to personally rescue each royal. Now he could see why Falena was so grateful to him for the part he played in saving the royals. _I can also see why Reis is fascinated with studying the Sun Rune, even if I personally don't want anything to do with it._

"But enough about that," Surya said. "We're departing back to Nagarea tomorrow, correct?"

"Yes, and we have a new headquarters," Caesar said.

Surya nodded and smiled at Daunte. "I'm glad to see that you have taken command, Daunte. With that idiot gone, I know you'll succeed. Or rather, _we'll_ succeed."

The table laughed, including Caesar, and Daunte joined in as well. _Everyone seems to have a lot of faith in me. I'll need to keep working hard so I don't let anyone down._

* * *

To Daunte's surprise, by the following morning all of the children of the Dark Chasm had been successfully sorted to either stay in Sol-Falena or transferred to other cities. It was reassuring to Daunte, and he felt confident that he was leaving them in good hands.

The extra boats that had been used to transport the children proved to be useful, as the soldiers Queen Lymsleia had pledged to them could make use of them for the trip to Nagarea. However, it still wasn't enough for all of them, so all that could be done was to give them a map of the path they needed to follow in order to reach headquarters. Daunte knew that it would take days for everyone to arrive at HQ, but nothing could diminish his good about this experience. He'd secured the wellbeing of his friends, _and_ he had an alliance with Falena. He was proud of what they'd accomplished in such a short period of time.

Before they left however, Arin had one final request. "Can we stop by the figurine shop? Pretty please?"

They were almost out of money, but Daunte didn't know the next time they would be back in Sol-Falena so he decided to indulge Arin and they ventured over to Mooney's shop before going down to the docks. The moment they stepped through the door however, a shout startled Daunte. "Oh, my Lord!"

Mooney raced over to them. He looked incredibly eager for some reason. "My Lord, I'm so thankful you stopped by my shop before you left. I wanted to thank you for your generous purchases the other day. When you bought all five of the Tenkai Stars from each war, I was moved by your appreciation for my hard work. And for the appreciation you displayed for the sacrifices these young men made."

Daunte shifted uncomfortably. Truthfully he'd just wanted to spoil Arin and give him figurines he admired. Although knowing that the five of them had been the Tenkai Star like _he_ was the Tenkai Star had also been a motivation for him. But he shrugged and nodded. "You're welcome."

"Meeting you has made me very interested in the person that you are and the direction you will be taking your country in," Mooney said. "You see; it has been my life goal to immortalize the heroes of many wars in my figurines. But I also want to participate in shaping the world. I want to embody the heroes that I create. When you bought those figurines, I realized that I want to follow you and help you succeed. I would like to join your cause, if you would have me."

Daunte was stunned. So just because he bought some figurines Mooney wanted to join his cause? That seemed too easy.

Mooney continued, however. "I will continue to make figurines for the five wars I've displayed here. And how about this—once you complete an entire set, I will give you a reward that I'm certain will aid you more in your fight. I also have some combat skills, though because I use my whittling knife I have very short range. So, what do you say? Can I join you?"

Daunte looked at Caesar, who simply shrugged. Daunte thought about it before turning back to Mooney and nodding. "Welcome aboard."

"Thank you so much!" Mooney shook his hand vigorously. "I'll need to unload the inventory I already have here, but I will follow you to Nagarea and join you as soon as I can!"

"All right!" Arin cheered. "Now we can get more figurines whenever we want!"

Daunte knew though that it would take a long time to get every figurine, as each collection had to have over 100 figurines. But he also figured that it would be something he could buy to keep Arin happy.

They made their way to the docks, and along the way Caesar went over their plan for getting back to HQ. "When we're back within Nagarean borders, we'll gather everyone who arrives with us and use the Blinking Mirror. It was very effective in the Dark Chasm, so it should work just as well this time."

Daunte nodded. "I agree."

"What's the Blinking Mirror?" Freyr asked.

"It'll teleport us directly back to headquarters," Felicity said.

"That's very convenient," Mokuren said.

"It sounds familiar," Surya said. "I think my mom mentioned something like that during the civil war."

At the docks the entire Falenas family was there to see them off. Neither Lymsleia nor Shoon stopped Freyr from coming with them, but Daunte could tell they were sad to see him go. Haswar played up the public dramatics and clung to Surya and sobbed loudly, but Surya looked more amused than embarrassed. Both Luserina and Euram said quiet goodbyes to Mokuren. Miakis kept nudging Farrin and egging her on to "say goodbye to her fiancé", but the Crowned Princess kept by her parents' side.

"Please take care of my son," Lymsleia said to Daunte, much to Freyr's chagrin. Daunte didn't like the added reminder that the lives of the Falenans were in his hands, but he also knew he _needed_ the reminder in order to ensure that they all would make it home to their families and nodded.

It was a slow process for all the boats to depart, but Daunte's boat left first. He had his own party in the boat with the exception of Shou and Oboro, who would be traveling in one of their agency boats. But Surya, Mokuren, Freyr, and Silvano also joined their boat and they set sail back to Nagarea. The atmosphere returning home was _much_ better than it had been the last time they left Falena. Everyone was talking and laughing amongst themselves, and Daunte also felt more relaxed. He could almost forget they were heading back into planning a civil war; it almost seemed like they were on vacation.

 _But we do need to get back. We've been gone for almost a week, and anything could've happened during this time._

It was daybreak by the time they reached the Northern Wharf. Daunte looked northward towards the island where the inventor was supposed to be living, and he saw another bright light on the horizon. He was _very_ curious as to what was going on out there, but he knew that it would have to wait for another time. They dragged their boat onto the beach, just as two other boats arrived, one of them containing Israfil and the soldiers from Sable. Daunte looked back the way they came and saw more boats approaching, but ultimately decided not to wait for them. They could still sail down the underground river to reach the headquarters.

"Everyone, please gather around!" Caesar shouted. "Lord Daunte is going to use the Blinking Mirror now! Take each other's hands and clear your minds!"

Daunte gripped Arin's hand tight in his fist, and Caesar grabbed his shoulder. He waited until everyone was hanging onto each other before raising the Mirror. "Take us back to headquarters!"

* * *

Daunte succeeded in teleporting his party and the entire entourage from Falena that had arrived with them. Viki was quite happy to see them, however no sooner did they arrive were they summoned up to the war room by Gunther and Varnaz. The news they reported was chilling.

"We've been found out."

Daunte was stunned. So the Theocracy knew where their headquarters was now? He looked to Caesar, but the strategist didn't look fazed. "Well, this was inevitable. This place _was_ the original headquarters of the first Liberation Army."

"Sheikh Faakhir and Sheikh Hale tried to ambush us from the north and south," Varnaz said. "They each had an Army of 500 soldiers."

"That's insane!" Felicity sputtered. "Sloan Faakhir launched a campaign _here_?! Where his wife and daughters are?!"

Knowing the monster that Sloan Faakhir was, Daunte wasn't surprised. Allise continued. "They were obviously planning on wiping us all out. They had their best soldiers in formation and were armed to the teeth. We wouldn't have stood a chance, except…"

"Except what?" Daunte asked.

"Yuber," Gunther spoke up. "When word reached us that both groups were going to try and ambush us, we were scrambling to get the Army in order. Yuber then just suddenly appeared, said we were "wasting time", and demanded that he go out and give both sides a "warm welcome"."

Daunte saw Caesar visibly relax at hearing this, and he smiled. "And I imagine that Yuber soundly beat them?"

"That's…one way of putting it," Varnaz said uneasily. "I've never seen anyone move so fast in my life. In less than two minutes he'd carved a path straight through Sheikh Faakhir's forces towards Faakhir himself. This one be— _man_ , killed almost three hundred soldiers with just his two swords. It was…" he shuddered slightly.

"Well the consolation was that Sheikh Hale saw the onslaught and immediately turned tail and ran," Allise said. She scoffed. "That man has never been one for confrontation with people who could easily beat him."

Daunte felt a sudden presence behind him, but he did not flinch. "I did what I was commanded to do."

Daunte turned to face Yuber. He did not seem proud of his accomplishment; he actually looked rather _bored_. "Thank you for your hard work," Daunte said.

"It was easy," Yuber responded. "Far too easy for me. I find it pitiful that you haven't yet won this war when your opposition is so feeble."

"Well, that's why _you're_ here," Caesar quipped. "To make sure we do win."

"D-Did you kill the Sheikh?" Roen asked softly.

Yuber didn't glance at him. "No."

"No?" Daunte echoed.

"I reached his side and engaged him in single combat. He is a human, but he was an even match for me." he paused before continuing. "There was something off about him."

"Off?"

"He emulated an unnatural power," Yuber said. "It was a power that was beyond his physical capabilities. It was a power that felt…familiar to me." he frowned deeply. "But I don't remember how it is familiar to me."

"W…Does the Sheikh have a True Rune?" Daunte asked hesitantly.

"No," Yuber quickly responded, but someone else said the word as well. Daunte looked around Yuber and saw two familiar faces standing at the doors of the war room.

"He did not have a True Rune," Sierra said with certainty. She seemed to glide into the room, followed by Nash. "But he _does_ possess a power that he would not be capable of without a Rune."

"You possess a True Rune as well," Yuber pointed out. "The Blue Moon Rune."

"I do," Sierra confirmed.

"Why haven't you used your Rune thus far? Its strength alone could've ended this war sooner."

Sierra smiled thinly. "Lord Daunte would not want me to use this Rune."

"Really?" Daunte said.

" _Really_ ," Sierra said with cold finality.

"You really don't want to see her Rune in action," Nash said.

Yuber scoffed. "So your Rune requires human sacrifice. What does it matter when this war is killing people anyways?"

"Wait, what?!" Gunther snapped. Daunte was also stunned.

"The Blue Moon Rune is linked to the undead," Caesar explained. "It turns its user into a vampire, and allows the user to converts people into vampires as well. It also has the ability to summon zombies as an undead army. However—"

"However, summoning the undead requires me to _make_ the undead army," Sierra said blandly. "So people die first and then are turned into zombies. Do you see why it's not a good idea for me to use this Rune?"

"Then the Rune is wasted on you," Yuber pointed out. "Neclord made much better use of it."

"I'm sure he did," Sierra replied. "But he's not here right now, is he?"

Daunte looked between Sierra and Yuber, feeling very uneasy. "So…you are a vampire, Sierra?"

Sierra gave a toss of her head. "Wasn't it obvious?"

Daunte noted her pale complexion, her striking red eyes, and her general eccentric behavior, and suddenly felt foolish that he didn't notice earlier. Sierra continued. "You have nothing to fear. I mastered the use of my Rune long ago."

"B-But you feed off of people, don't you?" Roen asked.

Sierra gave him a look that clearly indicated that she thought the question was stupid. Nash immediately stepped forward. "T-There really is nothing to worry about. No one here is in danger, and no one dies from it."

"But is anyone at risk when you bite them?" Silvano asked.

"I'm not a werewolf," Sierra said. "People don't turn when I bite them."

"Wait, _werewolves_ are real?!" Mokuren sputtered.

"I think we're getting off-topic," Caesar said. "I'm glad though that we diverted a massacre. But we must remain vigilant, especially now since they know where we are."

"That's actually why we came up here," Nash said. Daunte looked closely at him, and silently wondered if _he_ was also a vampire like his wife. "I would be careful if I were you, Lord Daunte. Our location may have been leaked to our enemies."

Daunte stiffened at hearing this. _Wait…so we have a traitor?_

"I think it's a bit premature to think that," Allise said. "As we said, we haven't exactly been subtle in establishing this place as headquarters."

"But we will keep what you've told us in mind," Caesar said. "The fact that the massacre was timed when Lord Daunte was not here is…suspicious."

"I agree," Daunte said, nodding. "Thank you for bringing this to my attention, Nash."

Nash shrugged. "Well I should make myself useful."

"Yes, you should," Sierra muttered.

"In any case," Caesar said. "We've secured a foreign alliance with Falena. My Lord, would you like to introduce our new allies?"

Daunte could see that his newfound allies were unnerved by both Yuber and Sierra and loudly cleared his throat. "U-Um, yes. Everyone, you know Surya Falenas…"

* * *

One of the Falenan boats arrived by nightfall. Daunte knew that many more would come overnight, and in the following days.

After welcoming the first boat, he went straight to his room and fell face-first onto the bed. He was _exhausted_ …but he was also thrilled. He'd made a huge step, and while Yuber's brutality made him uncomfortable he'd also made a statement by unleashing one man onto an army. It showed the Theocracy that he wasn't going to allow them to slaughter his people any more. He was a force to be reckoned with. Yuber showed that he could possibly win this war with one man.

 _There is still a lot that I must do, but we're going in the right direction. I truly believe this._

Daunte started drifting off to sleep when a knock on his door startled him awake. He immediately sat up. "Yes?" he called out.

"May I come in, my Lord?" came the reply. In an instant Daunte was on his feet and he rushed to the door. He opened it to see Caesar, holding a tray with a candle and a teapot. Caesar was smiling, but Daunte knew by the tray that he wanted to have a lengthy conversation with Daunte.

Sure enough… "There was something I wanted to talk to you about. Ms. Tidur was nice enough to prepare tea for us."

Daunte nodded and opened the door fully. "Come in."

A few minutes later they were sitting at the table sipping the hot tea. Daunte waited for Caesar to speak, but he felt tense. He knew whatever Caesar wanted to discuss had to be very important.

"I wanted to discuss long-term plans with you, Lord Daunte," Caesar said, setting his cup down. "Thus far we've mostly thought in the short-term. This alliance with Falena however has changed things."

Daunte shrugged stiffly. "I haven't really given much thought to the future," he confessed. "Most of my motivation thus far has been to stay alive and to protect Arin. Now that I'm leader I'm just focused on succeeding, protecting my people, defeating the Theocracy once and for all."

"That's all understandable," Caesar said. "But once you defeat the Theocracy, what will you do?"

"What do you mean?"

"Will the government maintain the Theocracy answering to Nagar? Or will you institute a new form of government? Will you crown yourself king and make Nagarea a Kingdom? Or will you declare yourself president and make Nagarea a Republic? Or will you share your power equally with others and form a Federation? Which form of government do you believe would be best for Nagarea?"

Daunte stared at him stunned for several moments. He opened his mouth and closed it. Finally, he said, "I…don't know. Do people really want _me_ to run the country?"

"You'll need to be prepared for that possibility," Caesar said. "There will be some who will expect you to become king. Or if they hold a vote for president, they would most likely vote you in as they voted you in as our Commander."

"But I'm _new_ to command," Daunte said. "I'm still trying to get comfortable in my own skin as leader of the Liberation Army. But they expect me to run the _entire country_?"

"Then who would _you_ like to run the country?" Caesar asked. "Or do you still want to maintain the same political system that's always been here?"

"I…don't know." Daunte felt embarrassed that he hadn't thought of these things. It made him feel somewhat inadequate as leader. _Mom…she led the Liberation Army to make changes. But I don't know if she planned on maintaining the Theocracy or assuming power herself. Did she ponder what to do about the future as well? I don't know what I'm going to do with the government after we win…did Mom know what she was going to do?_

"Then it's good we're discussing this now," Caesar said. "But I don't want to make it seem like I'm putting pressure on you. As isolated as Nagarea has been, you've not experienced any other forms of government other than a Theocracy. And a _corrupt_ Theocracy at that. However, being a success means more than winning this war. You will need to have a very concrete form of government after we win, or we will be doomed to have another civil war after this one."

"Do you have any suggestions?" Daunte asked.

Caesar nodded. "Yes. You've lived through a Theocracy and have seen a constitutional monarchy in action in Falena. However, in order for you to decide which form of government is best for Nagarea, you need to broaden your horizons and experience these other forms of government firsthand. What I'm saying is this." He leaned across the table. "We should make a diplomatic visit to another country so you can see these other governments."

This proposal both excited and terrified Daunte, but a rational thought immediately came to him. "B-But this could take _years_! I can't go and travel to experience the political systems of other countries in the middle of a civil war! Viki has told me she could only teleport us within Nagarea's borders! It already takes us a lengthy amount of time to reach Falena, so it would take us much longer to reach other countries!"

"This is true," Caesar said. "And the fact of the matter is that Nagarea, Falena, and Armes are the only countries on the Southern Continent. If you want to expand your political horizons even more, the Northern Continent has more countries."

"Yes, but that will still take a lot of time to reach this place," Daunte said, standing up. "And I don't feel comfortable being away from the Army for a long period of time! We were gone for a week in Falena and look what happened? Our headquarters was attacked! I can't simply up and leave like that!"

"You have nothing to worry about," Caesar reassured him, raising a hand slightly. "I will take care of our travel preparations. And we don't have to do this in one go—we'll just stop and visit one country to begin with. But trust me when I say that this will be worth it, my Lord. This will help you decide what is best for Nagarea. This is something that you _must_ experience. Reading about this isn't enough, you need to see this for yourself. I wouldn't tell you to do this if I didn't think it was a good idea. So, please trust me with this."

Daunte slowly sat down. This was a monumental decision to make. To just leave for a long period of time just so he could research another form of government on a separate _continent_? It seemed like a very selfish thing to do, when his Army would be left behind fending for themselves.

…But. But he also knew that Caesar would have proposed it if he'd thought it was a bad idea. And it _was_ important to know what sort of government he would institute for Nagarea before winning the war. He felt bad about leaving his allies behind, even for a short period of time, but…

 _But I need to start thinking in the long-term. And I don't choose the right form of government for this country, then I'll risk another civil war. I don't know if I even want to rule, but…but I need to be prepared for that possibility. And I need to know that I choose the government we need._

So he reluctantly nodded. "All right. Let's travel another country."

Caesar positively grinned at him. "Thank you, my Lord. I will make all of the necessary arrangements." He stood up from the table.

"Where do we even start?" Daunte asked. "I know nothing about the Northern Continent."

"Oh, that's simple, my Lord," Caesar said easily. "We'll start where _I_ started—the Toran Republic."

* * *

End of Chapter Four


	38. Chapter Five: Part One

Sorry for the long delay, but I'm back! And I've released another long-term poll! Feel free to cast your vote, or if you're unable to you can post it here in a comment. The link to the forum for the polls is on my profile page.

* * *

Chapter Five: Part One

 _One week later…_

 _Mlkwt Alsmwat, capital of Nagarea_

The last time Adalgiso had stepped foot in the Grand Citadel was forty-nine years ago, when his grandfather was still alive. His grandfather had been a High Cleric, and even though the family lived in Farna and not the capital they still had quite a lot of political standing. The place however had intimidated him greatly as a child, and he remembered hiding his face in his mother's skirts for almost their entire visit.

Now, as he sat waiting outside the corridor leading to the Blessed Chamber, that same anxiety began to flare up once more. He looked down at his hands and let out a shaky sigh. He honestly did not know what was going to happen. Would they be punished for their failure? Or would they be granted leniency in light of the situation?

 _I've never seen so many people die at once, not even after all these years of military service. The men and women who served under us fell so quickly, and many of them didn't even see their deaths coming._ Adalgiso clenched his hands into fists. _I should have done something. I should have tried to stop that monster. How could I not have seen him until_ _ **after**_ _he killed over a hundred of our soldiers? With so many of our soldiers lost, it's no wonder the High Clerics have summoned the Sheikh for a hearing over what happened._

He went still then, and slowly unclenched his fists. He didn't want to think about it anymore.

Thankfully, the double doors to the Blessed Chamber swung open. Adalgiso immediately leapt to his feet as Sheikh Sloan Faakhir stormed out of the Chamber. Two guards standing to attention jumped out of his way, but Adalgiso quickly approached him. "Sheikh," he greeted, saluting his commander. "How did the hearing go?"

"They admonished me for my failure," Sloan told him sharply, coming to a stop before him. "The Lady Matron however spoke on my behalf and told them the situation was out of my control. She even gave a name for the beast who challenged our forces."

"It has a name?!" Adalgiso asked.

Sloan shrugged stiffly. "She called him Yuber, and told the High Clerics that he was not human and possessed a True Rune. In light of this information, the High Clerics only gave me a warning and did not strip me of my command."

Adalgiso blinked slowly. "That's a relief, but…how did the Lady Matron know the name of that monster?"

"Does it matter?" Sloan demanded in a sharp tone. Adalgiso however did not flinch. "No it doesn't, my Lord."

"None of it matters," Sloan said. They began walking down the corridor. "Once we return to the Garrison, we will round up our troops and launch another assault on the fortress of those traitors once again."

"My Lord!" Adalgiso sputtered impulsively. Sloan glared at him and Adalgiso steadied his voice. "My Lord, we suffered catastrophic losses in that battle. And those that were not killed are still recuperating with _serious_ injuries. Even multiples uses of Water and Wind Runes are not helping them with their recoveries. Given the circumstances, I believe we should refrain from launching another strike on the Liberation Army headquarters so soon."

"Adalgiso, what are we?" Sloan asked him.

"What?"

"What. Are. We?" Sloan enunciated in a low, dangerous tone.

"W-We are soldiers," Adalgiso said.

"And the people who serve under me are…?"

"Soldiers."

"Exactly. It is our duty to fight and die on the battlefield for this country. It is our duty to kill anyone that poses a threat to us. And it is the duty of my soldiers to fight and die for this country. That is _all_ they need to do. What does it matter what their injuries are, when they're going to die anyway?"

A hard lump formed in Adalgiso's throat, and he stared in stunned silence at Sloan. He stared into the hard face, the unfeeling eyes, of the young man who he'd sworn his life to. And he could see that Sloan meant ever word that he said.

 _This is wrong. This is so wrong…_

But Adalgiso did not say this out loud. Instead he swallowed thickly, and changed the subject. "My Lord."

"What is it?" they began walking once more.

Adalgiso hesitated before pushing forward. "You…You've read the reports; I imagine?"

"Which ones? You'll have to be more specific."

"That your wife and daughters have joined the Liberation Army and are at that headquarters."

Sloan stopped dead in his tracks then, and Adalgiso quickly stopped as well. It was one thing that unsettled Adalgiso about their campaign against the Liberation Army headquarters—the fact that Tidur, Esther, and Ciana were there. It didn't matter to Adalgiso that they had turned traitor; this was still Sloan's family. And no matter what the circumstances, there was no possible way he could _ever_ threaten or hurt Sloan's wife and daughters.

And it had stunned him greatly when Sloan commenced the campaign regardless, not seeming to care that Tidur and their daughters could possibly be killed in the process.

Sloan ducked his head, and Adalgiso looked at him closely. For a moment—For a moment, Sloan's scowl had changed. It a deep frown, as though he were on the verge of tears. And Sloan's eyes were squeezed shut. Adalgiso felt a lurch inside his being, just a small sliver of hope. _Maybe…_

But then Sloan's head quickly raised, and his expression changed to being hard and unfeeling once more. "I'm aware of this, Adalgiso. That stupid, weak woman ran away from me and stole my daughters from me. And she shows her lying, traitorous colors. She's corrupted my children."

Dread swelled up quickly inside Adalgiso. "…What will you do when you see them again?" he asked quietly.

Sloan raised his right hand, clenched in a fist, and rubbed his left hand over the back of it. His hands were gloved, but Adalgiso was familiar with this gesture. Nothing good ever happened after Sloan did it. "They are traitors and will be treated the same as traitors are. They will not get special treatment just because of how they are related to me. Esther and Ciana must be punished under Original Sin. And Tidur…" he sneered once more. "I will request to see to her punishment myself. I'm going to take _great_ pleasure in punishing her for everything she's done to me. It's no less than what a traitorous wench like her deserves."

Adalgiso's mouth hung open, and he did not follow when Sloan walked away. He just stared stunned after him…at the man who he pledged his life to twelve years prior.

 _Is…Is this the same man I've known for almost twenty years? I don't know this person. This is the same body, but not the same mind. Sloan, he…the man I know would have_ _ **never**_ _threatened his family. The Sloan Faakhir I know cherished his family. He didn't shy away from public displays of affection with Tidur. When Ciana was a baby, he used to walk the Garrison carrying her in his arms. I-I even remember walking in on him having a tea party with Esther! Now he threatens to send that girl to the Dark Chasm?! Along with Ciana?! And Tidur…_

Adalgiso closed his eyes. He remembered too well; how sullen and reserved Tidur grew to be, after being boisterous and cheerful for so long. The bruises and welts on her face. He remembered hearing her screaming and crying almost every day from the Sheikh's living quarters in the Garrison. How in just a few short years Sloan Faakhir had turned from an exceptional leader with integrity into a tyrannical monster. It hadn't surprised anyone in the slightest when Tidur ran away and took her daughters with her.

 _I don't know what happened, but…Sloan Faakhir is truly not the same person anymore._

But Adalgiso simply ducked his head, and followed after the Sheikh.

* * *

 _Liberation Army Headquarters_

When Daunte entered Oboro's office, he tried not to be so surprised to see it bustling with activity. Five nondescript detectives had joined the Army, and they were talking amongst themselves or writing reports. Shou for his part was lounging on one of the couches and he looked to be asleep. When Oboro saw Daunte, his face brightened and he waved him inside. "Ah, my Lord! Come in, come in!"

Shou slowly moved his legs off the couch as Daunte took a seat on it. Oboro motioned to another detective, who rushed off to prepare tea. "What brings you here, my Lord?"

"I wanted to reach out to you about finding potential recruits," Daunte said. "You've probably heard, but in a couple of days we're going to be departing for the Northern Continent to visit the Toran Republic."

"Yes, I've heard," Oboro said. "Considering the great distance between us, I'm afraid I have no information about potential recruits from the North."

"That's okay. I don't expect to find any new recruits up there anyways."

"Oh, but you never know my Lord. You'd be surprised how open-minded people can be."

Daunte shrugged. "I don't know if people on the Northern Continent would be interested in a civil war on the Southern Continent. But I'll keep an open mind."

"To answer your question, yes; I _do_ have some potential recruits for you." Oboro waved his hand, and one of his detectives handed him a report. He flipped it open. "I would recommend that you pay another visit to the Dark Chasm."

"Have they reopened it?!" Daunte demanded, feeling a slight sting of fear.

Oboro shook his head. "Since we've broken all the equipment there, I don't see _how_ the Theocracy could reopen it. But this report says to stop by there."

"A preteen girl has been loitering there for a few days," Shou interjected bluntly. "Last I saw she was standing at the bottom of the mineshaft, looking at her surroundings in amazement. When I spoke to her, she just kept commenting on how unbelievable it was that the place was closed." He shrugged. "She might be a survivor of the place."

Daunte nodded to this. "I'll definitely talk to her. Anything else?"

"Oh yes." Oboro flipped the page. "It's been recommended that you stop by the town of Žiak."

Daunte went still. " _Žiak_? The university town?"

Oboro nodded. "You might find something interesting in the southeast portion of the town."

"Is it safe to go to Žiak?" Daunte asked. "The University of Žiak is the second most prestigious school in Nagarea, behind the Holy School in the capital. Many elitists go there for school. The security must be intense there."

Oboro smiled at him. "You've very well informed, Daunte."

"Well, my mom transferred from the Holy School to the University of Žiak when she was in school. I remember her saying that Žiak's school was not as intense as the Holy School, so it's more popular for rich families. I imagine having so many politically important people in one spot would have a lot of security."

"There should be no problem in you entering the town proper," Oboro said. "The school in the center of town is an entirely different manner, but this report said that you could find a potential recruit in the town proper, so you should have nothing to worry about."

Daunte nodded to this. "Anything else?"

"Yes." Oboro flipped the page. "There is an island due north of the Northern Wharf. You will find a person of interest on the south beach. There is also a recommendation that you travel west on the island all the way to the cliffs. You will find something of interest there as well."

"So the Dark Chasm, Žiak, and an island," Daunte summarized. "Thank you so much for your hard work, everyone."

"Anytime, my Lord," Oboro said, smiling.

Daunte reached into his pocket and pulled out his wallet. "Would you mind running some investigations on my allies as well?"

"Certainly. Who do you have in mind?"

* * *

Before reporting to the war room, Daunte made the rounds around HQ. The Falenans had successfully integrated themselves with the Army, and while they were still distinguishable by their Falenan uniforms they all seemed to get along well with the Liberation Army soldiers. Surya had taken up residence in the main building on the same floor as Daunte, along with Mokuren. Both Silvano and Israfil had taken rooms in the empty building due south of the main building on the second floor. In the southwest building on the second floor, Mooney had set up his whittling shop opposite of Eliasen's currency conversion shop. In a third room, the largest room on the floor, Daunte had found that the figurines he'd bought from Mooney were arranged on five platforms surrounding the room. He realized that using this room would allow for him to keep track of the figurines he was purchasing. To ensure he wouldn't buy the same figurine twice, and so he would know when he'd completed a set.

Daunte steered himself towards the main building, though his eyes went towards the stairs leading down into the cavern. Ever since Sierra publicly admitted she was a vampire, most everyone avoided her. Not that they were approaching her beforehand anyway, but the knowledge she an undead mistress definitely put people on edge. Sierra for her part was perfectly content to be left alone, and Nash similarly kept to his wife's side. Daunte however did not want to put her off (or make it seem like he was afraid of her), so he made an effort to check on the couple every now and then. Sierra seemed annoyed by Daunte's visits and openly expressed her annoyance, but Daunte noticed that there wasn't a lot of bite in her tone whenever she admonished him for stopping by. So…So maybe she _did_ appreciate the Liberation Army leader looking in on them?

Regardless, Daunte trusted her when she said she was not a danger. And though she admitted to using humans as prey, Daunte also believed her when she said she hadn't killed anyone while feeding for the last few centuries. Though knowing that True Runes were sentient, Daunte wondered of the Blue Moon Rune was content with simply being attached to its mistress's hand and not being used to its full potential.

 _Well given what Sierra has told me, I'm glad it's NOT being used to its full potential._

Daunt hiked up the stairs of the main building to the fifth floor. He spotted Yuber standing by himself, per usual. "Good morning," he offered.

Per usual, Yuber did not respond.

Daunte entered the war room and was greeted by the usual familiar faces; Caesar, Gunther, Allise, Eamon, Varnaz, Keiran Surya, Mokuren, Silvano, Israfil, and others. Caesar was grinning as everyone saluted Daunte, but Daunte noted the apprehension in several faces and he knew that they had some inclination about what was being planned for Daunte.

"All right, let's get right to the point," Caesar announced. "In a few days we're going to be taking a trip up to the Northern Continent—"

"Isn't this a rather reckless venture while we're in the middle of war?" Eamon asked. "Traveling to the Northern Continent is not the same as traveling to Falena. You were all gone for a week when you went to Falena. You'll be lucky to reach the Northern Continent _within_ a week by boat!"

"And Viki already said she can't teleport you outside of Nagarea's borders," Allise said. "If our Commander is gone for an extended period of time, and the Theocracy finds out about it, they will bring all of their forces down upon us."

"I understand everyone's concerns," Caesar said, raising his hands. "But none of you have anything to worry about. I've planned this out carefully. If everything goes according, we should be back in about a month."

"How is such a thing possible?" Keiran asked. "Mihr has told me that it took him almost two months to reach Nagarea from the Northern Continent."

"Well, our method of travel will be an…unconventional one." Caesar shrugged. "For one thing, we're not going to be making the journey by boat."

"You won't?" Varnaz asked.

"We won't?" Daunte asked at the same time.

"Due north of Nagarea is an island inhabited by an inventor. The inventor's name is Hero, and he's been working on an invention for the last sixteen years based on ancient blueprints linked to the Sindar race."

"The Sindar race?!" Reis burst into the room and advanced upon Caesar. "Where are these blueprints you mentioned?! I must see them now!"

" _I_ don't have them," Caesar said. "But if you're interested, you can come with us to the island to meet Hero. We'll be heading to the Northern Continent from there."

Reis made a face. "The Northern Continent? But my research _here_ isn't done yet!"

"Well, I don't know what to tell you then." Caesar turned to Daunte. "As far as I know, Hero has not run any tests with this invention of his. But there should be no harm in paying him a visit and seeing the contraption firsthand, right?"

Daunte nodded. "Oboro advised me to go this island anyway to find recruits. I don't mind stopping by there to look around."

"When it is time for you to travel to the Northern Continent, I would like to come with you," Silvano said, stepping forward. "I received a letter from Kaylani. She's traveled to the Northern Continent for a diplomatic mission, however it was her wish to visit my parents and introduce them to our son. I would like to meet up with all of them."

"Absolutely," Daunte said, nodding. "I think Sharon is from the Toran Republic as well, so I'll ask if she wants to come. Keiran, you mentioned that Mihr is from the Northern Continent, right? Is—"

"Yes, he's from Toran as well."

Daunte looked out over his allies. "I know all of you are concerned about my taking this journey. However, I think it's beneficial that I experience the working of governments other than a Theocracy."

"You won't maintain a Theocracy for our government?" Varnaz asked with surprise.

"I don't blame you," Gunther muttered.

"What I think is best," Daunte said. "Is for me to understand other forms of government, and to compare them to our Theocracy to determine what would be best for Nagarea."

"Well…it _does_ seem more practical for you to do this now as opposed to at the end of the war," Allise said. "If you wait until after we win, then the entire country would be at a standstill while you try and figure out how to rule."

Daunte stiffened. _There. They do expect me to rule after the war is over._

"I've sent word to Toran so you may meet with President Lepant," Caesar said. "Don't expect him to spill any secrets to you, but he sounded enthusiastic in his letter to meet you."

"Before we leave, I want to follow up on Oboro's leads and find recruits," Daunte said. "Then I want to make sure everything will be taken care of here while we're gone."

* * *

Mihr was outside having a duel with Jantu when Daunte went looking for him. Keiran accompanied him as well. All around the small arena everyone was shouting and holding handfuls of paper money. Daunte saw that the soldiers were holding both bits and Potch.

Jantu said something and lunged at Mihr. It looked like he was performing a deathblow. But Mihr sidestepped him and landed a heavy blow on the Kobold with his wooden sword. Jantu grunted, took two steps, and fell heavily to his knees. After a moment he said, "I yield."

The soldiers surrounding the arena shouted, either in joy or outrage. Several threw their money onto the ground, and Yaman was quick to scoop it all up while cackling. "Mihr is the winner! Fork over your money!"

"I'm surprised how lenient you are with gambling, Lord Daunte," Keiran said, though there was a hint of humor in his tone.

Daunte shrugged. "It keeps everyone entertained, so why not?" his smile faded when some of the gambling soldiers suddenly broke out into fights. "Hey, hold on a mom—"

"Pull yourselves together!" Keiran snapped, surging forward. He grabbed two men by their collars and separated them effortlessly. Both Jantu and Mihr also joined in to separate fighters. "How dare you act so shamefully in front of our Commander!"

The fights immediately stopped as the soldiers became aware of Daunte's presence. Daunte suddenly felt embarrassed as the soldiers converged upon him, apologizing profusely and pleading for mercy. All he could do was sputter that everything was okay, and that this shouldn't happen again. While this was going on, Yaman continued to scoop up discarded bits and Potch while cackling to himself. He swept down to grab some more bills, only to encounter Jantu's foot. The Kobold frowned down at him with open disapproval. "How much of this money is from losing parties, and how much is it are from soldiers who won the bet?"

Yaman twitched, and laughed nervously. "Ah…you see…"

"Good morning, my Lord." As the nervous soldiers dispensed, Mihr approached Daunte and Keiran and saluted. "How are things?"

"Good," Daunte said. "I actually wanted to speak to you about something."

"Let us return to the main building so that we may speak in private," Keiran said. Daunte saw that Jantu was forcing Yaman to return money to specific soldiers and nodded. "Yes, let's."

They went back to the main building and entered the room Keiran and Mihr shared. Daunte and Keiran took a seat at the table. Mihr found his sword, Nariek, and brought it to the table. He unsheathed the sword and began to carefully clean it.

"I—" Daunte began.

"You would like me to accompany you on your trip to the Northern Continent," Mihr said stoically, not looking up from his task.

Daunte blinked, and nodded. "A-Ah, yes. I thought that since I'll be visiting your home country, that if you want the opportunity to visit home I should extend the invitation to you."

"That's very kind of you, my Lord, but I'm going to have to decline."

"What?" Daunte asked reflexively. He looked at Keiran, but the former Sheikh also looked surprised. "Are you sure?"

"My obligations are here, my Lord, not at the place of my birth," Mihr told him, finally looking up. "I do intend to return to Toran someday, when I am worthy of returning."

 _Worthy?_ This only puzzled Daunte. "Y…You're not worthy now?"

"No."

Daunte didn't know what to say to this, and looked again to Keiran for assistance. Keiran folded his arms over his chest and gave Mihr a leveled look. "After everything you've accomplished, and after everything you've done for me, I believe you've earned the right to face your brethren, Mihr."

"Are you going on this trip then, sir?" Mihr asked him, looking at him.

Keiran glanced at Daunte. "Ah…I hope you'll forgive me, Lord Daunte, but I don't intend on leaving Nagarea yet."

Daunte was about to speak, but Mihr cut him off. "Then I'm not leaving either."

"So your leaving hinges on whether or not _I_ leave?" Keiran asked. His tone had become razor sharp, and he rose from his seat.

Mihr said nothing. Keiran turned to Daunte. The anger in his expression gave Daunte pause. "My Lord, you'll have to excuse us."

"R-Right," Daunte said, quickly getting up. He left the room, and the door barely closed when he heard Keiran raised his voice with muted words. He felt a spike of concern, but as he turned he almost ran into Lanny, who wore a neutral expression. "Don't worry about it, my Lord. Everyone looks up to Mihr, but his stoicism even gets on Lord Keiran's nerves from time to time. Lord Keiran has to remind him a lot that he's still human."

"I…see," Daunte said. He shook his head and left to venture back outside. _Well, Mihr is not an option for right now. Maybe Sharon would like to come with us?_

To his surprise, as he ventured down into the underground cavern, Sharon was _very_ enthusiastic about going back to Toran.

"Oh, definitely!" she said, standing up. At her feet Suna was playing with Azul. Daunte was stunned by how much the blue baby dragon was growing. "I should report to Mom about how I wasn't able to find any Dragon Knights here! And she'll want to meet Azul, too!" she knelt down to join the dragons in their play. "When do we go?"

"Caesar said a few days," Daunte said. "In the meantime, I'm going to follow leads Oboro gave me to find some recruits here in Nagarea before I go."

Sharon looked up at him then. "Hey…can we come with you on the recruitment quest? I'm having another…feeling."

Daunte stilled. "I-Is it the same as when we found Azul?"

Sharon nodded. "Maybe…Maybe there's another dragon egg somewhere that we need to find?"

"Then we should definitely look for it before it hatches," Daunte said. "We're going to a town first and then the Dark Chasm, so I don't think it will be in either place. But we'll also be heading to the island with the inventor as well, so I'll take the three of you with me then."

"Sounds good. Thank you, Lord Daunte!"

Daunte nodded and turned to leave. He walked headlong into Nash, who was grinning. "Oh, here you are!"

"How can I help you?" Daunte asked.

"I heard you'll be going to Toran in a few days to study their government," Nash said. "I would also recommend that you go to Harmonia as well."

"How far is Harmonia from Toran?"

"Oh…there's a quite a distance. But—"

"I would love to visit Harmonia, but I don't want to be away from Nagarea for too long," Daunte said. "I'll suggest it to Caesar for another trip."

Nash shrugged. "Fair enough. But if you're going out, may I come with you? I'm afraid it's been quite a while since I was away from this place."

"Are you also inviting Sierra?"

Nash shook his head. "My missus needs her rest."

Daunte almost asked if it was safe to leave Sierra by herself, but he realized that was very rude and remained silent. But Nash still leaned forward. "It may not appear so, but you would actually be _safer_ with her than with me."

"…What does that mean?" Daunte asked quietly.

"Don't worry, it's not a threat. Just a statement." Nash turned and walked away, waving at Daunte over his shoulder. "Come, let's go."

Daunte shook his head, but followed Nash without another word.

* * *

Daunte went to Caesar to assemble his party. Since Nash was already with him he added Nash. He also added Felicity, Roen, Gunther, and Shou. Shou was _incredibly_ annoyed at having been summoned, but voiced little complaints. Then they went down to see Viki and requested to be teleported to the Dark Chasm.

"She's all the way at the bottom," Shou said bluntly, pointing down the shaft. Daunte looked over the side and indeed saw a small form moving around the Lower Tier.

"So all she's been doing is wandering around down there for the last few days?" Felicity asked. "Where does she sleep? How does she eat?"

"If she survived the Dark Chasm, I'm sure she would find a way," Roen said.

They reached the Lower Tier, and Daunte surveyed the girl looking at her surroundings. She looked to be thirteen years old, and her long black hair was tied in two pigtails on both sides of her head, and her dark eyes were wide with amazement. She wore a purple _Hmong_ dress, the sleeves coming down to her elbows and the skirt to her knees, and black flat shoes. She barely stirred when Daunte approached her. "Hello."

"Can you believe this?" she asked him breathlessly. She giggled with delight. "It's gone! It's really gone! This horrible place was destroyed?"

"So you _are_ a survivor of the Dark Chasm?" Felicity asked her. "Why weren't you with the other children?"

"Other children?" the girl asked. "What do you mean?"

"I'm Daunte of the Liberation Army," Daunte introduced himself. "And we liberated the Dark Chasm."

The girl shrieked, and slapped both hands against her mouth. "It was you? _You_?! That's incredible! Thank you so much!"

"Why didn't you come back to our headquarters with us?" Roen asked her.

The girl shook her head. "Oh, I haven't been here in over a year. I escaped."

" _Escaped?!_ " the group shouted.

"Yes, escaped," she replied nonchalantly.

"How did you escape from this place?" Daunte asked.

"Oh, that's simple. Watch!" the girl suddenly flicked her left wrist. There was an explosion of light in front of Daunte's face and he shouted, covering his face. The other party members quickly moved to defend him, but he shook his head. "I'm fine, I'm fine!"

"Yoo-hoo!" came a call from above them. The group slowly looked up and saw the girl waving down to them. But she wasn't merely a Tier above them, no—she was sitting on the edge of _Tier Three_!

"H-How did you do that?!" Felicity exclaimed.

"Ah ah!" the girl chided, wagging her finger at them. "That's a secret. But the Trick Rune can do _many_ things!"

"Trick Rune?" Shou echoed. He frowned. "Do you mean the Gadget Rune?"

"No, the Trick Rune!" the girl corrected him.

"What does the Trick—or Gadget—Rune do?" Gunther asked.

"It's related to mechanical beings," Shou said. "Yet she used it for some sort of parlor trick?"

"It's not a parlor trick!" the girl said indignantly. Now she was back down on the Lower Tier. "It helped me to escape!"

"I'd heard, before you three escaped," Gunther said. "That only one child had ever escaped from the Dark Chasm. It was undoubtedly this girl."

"What's your name?" Daunte asked her.

"Oh, my name?" the girl gestured to herself. "My name is Xi An. And even though my stay in the Dark Chasm was short, I'm very thankful to you for liberating it."

"In that case, would you be interested in joining my Army?" Daunte asked. He quickly explained the mission goal of the Liberation Army to Xi An, who nodded eagerly. "Of course I'll join you! It's the least I can do to repay you!"

"That Rune of yours might come in handy as well," Gunther said.

"Would you like to come with us, or—" Daunte began.

Xi An waved a dismissive hand. "I know where to go! And I bet I'll beat you all back there! See you later!" and in a flash she was gone.

The group was left standing there a little stunned. Then Shou said, "Can we go back now?"

* * *

Daunte had never traveled to Žiak before, but he knew that it was roughly 8 kilometers west of K'alak'i Patieba, which he _had_ been to. They used the Blinking Mirror to return to HQ, and Shou promptly disappeared and left Daunte short a party member. But he didn't let it bother him and simply went back up to see Caesar. Daunte was curious about Xi An's combat abilities and requested that she join. Once she arrived, they went back downstairs and had Viki teleport them to K'alak'i Patieba.

"Maybe we should check on the tradesman?" Roen asked, pointing to Kin's post.

Daunte shrugged. "Sure. But I haven't really traded anything so I don't know if we made a difference on the market. Was it soy sauce he was talking about before?"

"Rice," Gunther said. "Allise did some rice trading on her own anyway, so let's see if that made a difference."

Unfortunately, Kin did not have good news for them. "The price of rice has skyrocketed even more! Now it's _5,000_ bits! Oh, we must balance the trade of rice or else it will never go back down in price!"

Daunte saw that he was selling three bags of rice. He reluctantly parted with 15,000 bits and the group heaved the bags over their shoulders. "We'll sell them once we get to Žiak," Daunte said, grunting a little. "Hopefully we'll turn a profit."

"We actually might _lose_ money by doing this," Gunther said. "But hopefully these three bags will make an impact on the market."

After leaving K'alak'i Patieba and heading west to Žiak, Daunte suddenly felt foolish about his impulse buy. The bags of rice were heavy and slowed them down, and it made combat very difficult. Xi An however demonstrated that despite her young age she was capable of holding her own. She moved quickly in battle, and utilized her Trick Rune and unleashed mechanical dolls upon the boars and the wolves and DoReMi elves they encountered. Daunte still took a fully blast in the head from one of the elves, and his vision was flooded with music notes for well over an hour afterwards.

It was late into the afternoon by the time they arrived in Žiak, and by this time the afternoon classes had finished. The scholarly city of twenty-thousand residents was full of activity, as the elitist students milled around the streets, talking and gossiping amongst themselves. It made traveling the city very difficult, however with the sheer number of students out on the streets it certainly brought less attention to Daunte's group.

In the center of the city was Žiak University. It was a tall and very imposing building, twenty stories high and so pristine white that it was almost blinding to look at it on a sunny day. Daunte vaguely remembered the stories that Phoebe had told about, being a student of the University. She had mentioned her favorite class was on the seventeenth floor and she was lucky enough to have a seat next to the window. She took great pleasure is looking outside and observing the people below her, and—

"—completely asinine!"

"Chinmaya, _please_!"

Daunte looked over his shoulder. There was a grouping of four teenaged girls nearby. Three wore think pink veils with matching shapeless dresses, but the fourth wore a maroon-colored thin veil and matching shapeless dress. Under the veil her hair was chestnut brown and tied in several bantu knots on her head. She looked positively furious and her violet eyes were hard.

"I won't be silenced!" she declared loudly. "They're losing! They're losing this war to a bunch of _foreigners_ but they're too blind and stupid to see it!"

"Chinmaya!" another girl pleaded, grabbing Chinmaya's sleeve. "Please keep your voice down! You'll be arrested if the soldiers become annoyed by you!"

"I'm speaking the truth!" Chinmaya said harshly, pulling free. "For the last three years I've been top of my class! I have the second-highest grades in the history of Žiak University! Only Phoebe Amirmoez had higher marks than me!" Daunte flinched at hearing his mother's name.

"Phoebe Amirmoez was a murderer and a traitor!" another girl spoke up.

"Phoebe Amirmoez was a _genius_ ," Chinmaya said. "Just like how _I_ am a genius! And how has the university rewarded me? How has the _Theocracy_ rewarded me?! They've held me back a grade for the last _two years_! They've denied me the ability to graduate just because other students aren't doing as well as I am! And! And they passed me over to become Sheikh! Just because I didn't come from a family of Clerics like Tamara Nuori did! If they had selected _me_ to be Sheikh instead of her, then the southwestern provinces wouldn't be in the state that they're in now!"

"What's the commotion over here?" a soldier in silver uniform advanced upon the girls, frowning deeply. But Chinmaya returned his gaze with a look of angry defiance.

"N-Nothing," another girl stammered. She grabbed Chinmaya by the hand. "We're sorry for raising our voices. Come, we must get ready for our evening classes!" the girl took off running back towards the school. Chinmaya however still did not look happy.

"Well, she certainly has spirit," Gunther said, grinning.

"She certainly has a high enough opinion of her skills," Nash added.

"But she indicated that she wants the Theocracy to win the civil war," Felicity said. She looked to Daunte. "Let's forget about her for now."

Daunte nodded. "She's going back to the university anyway, so we won't be able to approach her regardless."

"Where did Oboro say we should be looking for the new recruit?" Roen asked.

"In the southeast section of town," Daunte said. "Let's take a look in that direction."

As they headed towards the southeast, Daunte noticed that the grouping of people was getting thicker. It was difficult weaving through the crowds. Up ahead, he saw a large building with a sign out front, indicating that it was a tavern and a restaurant. Daunte's heart leapt, remembering that he'd wanted to look for a chef to feed his Army and to alleviate the workload for Tidur. Unsurprisingly, the crowds in front of the tavern/restaurant was massive as everyone waited in-line to get inside.

"If our potential recruit is a cook, then this is a _very_ good sign," Gunther said, motioning to the line.

"But how do we expect to get into the building?" Felicity asked.

"Oh, _I_ can help," Xi An said, grinning. "Come over here."

The group crowded around Xi An. She gave a flick of her wrist, and Daunte saw a brief flash of light. Less than a second later, they were no longer outside but rather _inside_ the overcrowded tavern/restaurant. Luckily, the crowds of people inside did not notice their sudden appearance. The smell of food immediately made Daunte's stomach growl.

"Patience, everyone, patience! There's plenty of food to go around!"

Daunte looked towards the front counter. He saw a hibachi sizzling with food, and beside it was a counter where a young man in his late teens to early twenties was quickly preparing and rolling sushi rolls. His short silver hair was swallowed up by a tall black chef's hat, and his dark eyes were narrowed in concentration. He wore a black chef's jacket with a white apron around his waist. The rest of his body was hidden by the counter, but Daunte could assume he was wearing black pants.

"Come, let's go try his food," Gunther said. To Daunte's relief, nobody seemed to care that they were cutting the line and moved to stand right in front of the chef. The chef saw them and grinned. "Welcome, welcome! I have traveled all the way from Black Dragon Island to offer you the best cuisine on the Southern Continent!"

 _Black Dragon Island?_ Daunte wondered, but Nash quickly stepped forward. "Oh, so you're part of the Black Dragon Clan!" he looked to Daunte. "The chefs of the Black Dragon Clan are the best in the entire world."

"You're very well informed!" the chef laughed. "My name is Yasaka, and I came to Nagarea to spread the joy of my cooking! What would you like me to prepare?"

Daunte was unfamiliar with sushi rolls and allowed the others to select the food. They sat at the counter and dug in to the food. He noted that Nash did not take any food. Upon eating the sushi, he was stunned by the amazing flavor. Everything was perfect—the seaweed wasn't slimy or salty, the white rice was perfectly seasoned, and the fish wasn't rotten or sour. He couldn't help but smile as he finished eating.

"How was it?" Yasaka asked. He briefly left the counter to address the group.

Daunte answered honestly. "This is the best sushi I've ever eaten." It was the _only_ sushi he'd ever eaten, but he was sure that no other sushi would ever compare to this.

Yasaka seemed genuinely touched by his praise. "It brings me joy to know that my food brings joy. May I ask you a question?"

Daunte looked up at him. "Sure, what is it?"

"Have you ever heard of the 'divine fish'?"

"Divine fish?" Daunte asked. He shook his head and looked at the others. "I've never heard of it. Have any of you?"

Everyone answered in negative. Yasaka sighed sadly. "That is another reason that I came here. I've been looking for the divine fish for several years now. It is a key ingredient to a recipe lost to the Black Dragon Clan."

"Oh!" Nash perked up, startling the others. "Are you talking about the Blue Moon Bird Recipe?"

"Exactly!" Yasaka exclaimed, pointing. "That's exactly what I'm talking about! How do you know about it?"

Nash shrugged. "My missus said that during the Dunan Unification War she was dragged onto a food tasting panel and forced to eat some food she didn't like. According to her, the chefs who participated kept spouting off about the Blue Moon Bird recipe. Ultimately the Army chef ripped the recipe to pieces."

"I know," Yasaka said sadly. "That recipe was a treasured gem of our clan, and it's been lost forever. I've been trying to reconstruct the recipe based on stories I've heard about it. The divine fish has been the most prevalent ingredient discussed amongst the Clan regarding the recipe, and it's the only ingredient I don't have!" he groaned and pressed his hands into his hands. "If only I had the divine fish…then my reconstruction of the Blue Moon Bird recipe will be complete, and I can unleash the happiness of the recipe!"

Daunte slowly set his chopsticks down. He'd wanted to try and recruit Yasaka, as he was now certain that this was whom Oboro had been referring to. But he knew by the man's distress that he would not budge without receiving the divine fish to complete the elusive recipe.

 _But what is the divine fish? And where can I find it? I'll need to look into this more._

* * *

It was nightfall by the time they'd returned to HQ. Daunte immediately sought out Oboro to talk to him about the divine fish, but unfortunately the detective did not have anything useful to offer, other than to seek out a potential recruit on the beaches of the island north of the Northern Wharf. It was the island Caesar said the inventor was living on, and it was the destination they were going to anyways, so Daunte knew he may as well explore the island before meeting the inventor.

The following morning, before dawn, Daunte went to see Caesar to assemble his party. He chose Sharon, Suna, Azul (who was not physically capable of fighting), Allise, Lysander, and Lanny for his party. Then they went down to the underground cavern to sail up towards the Northern Wharf. As like before they faced no obstacles sailing, and reached north just a few short hours later. From there, they sailed directly north towards the island and Daunte's heart was pounding in his throat. He was extremely curious to see what the inventor may have on the island that would get them to the Northern Continent in a short period of time. But he did not want to meet the inventor without Caesar and so he quelled his curiosity and focused more on finding the recruits on the island.

It was early afternoon by the time they reached the island. They tied the boat to a worn out pier and walked out onto the sand. Daunte quickly looked around, knowing that the next potential recruit was somewhere on this beach, and spotted someone ten meters away. The group made their way towards the person, as they got closer Daunte was able to distinguish their features. It was a man, looking to be forty-five years old, who was darkly tanned and dressed in a blue fisherman's outfit. A harpoon was standing straight up sticking out of the sand. He was looking at his fishing boat, tied to a second pier, and he looked to be in deep thought. His dark hair had several streaks of grey in it, his face had deep wrinkled, but his blue eyes looked lively.

"Hello," Daunte said when they got close enough to the man.

"Hello!" the man greeted them eagerly, grinning. "My name is Bohai. I'm the best fisherman you'll ever meet in Nagarea!"

Daunte waited for him to give more of an introduction, but he didn't. Daunte coughed awkwardly. "I'm Daunte, leader of the Liberation Army. Would you be interested in joining us?"

Bohai thought about this for a long moment. "Liberation Army, huh? Well…the Theocracy _is_ causing a lot of trouble. They've made fishing very difficult for me."

"So you'll join?" Lysander asked.

"…Perhaps," Bohai said vaguely. Suddenly his grin widened. "How about this: would you be interested in a fishing challenge?"

"Fishing challenge?" Lanny echoed, making a face.

"We'll get into our boats and fish for as many fish as we can within a specific time limit," Bohai said. "If you nab more fish than me, then I'll join you. If you don't, then…" he shrugged.

"Hold on," Sharon said sharply. "Isn't fishing a timely process? This could take _hours_!"

"Oh, you don't know these waters like I do. Once you get to the right spot, you'd be surprised by how many fish you could nab! Why, one day I managed to get twenty different fishes in _ninety seconds_!"

"EH?!" everyone shouted.

"So, what do you say?" Bohai asked Daunte, winking. "Do you think you can fish better than me?"

Daunte only vaguely remembered fishing with his father years ago, but he didn't want to back down from this challenge. He slowly nodded. "All right."

"Since ninety is my lucky number, that's how long we'll fish for," Bohai said, heading towards his boat. "Whoever gets the most fish in ninety seconds wins!"

"B-But who's gonna keep track of time?!" Lanny sputtered.

Bohai shrugged. "One of you can."

The process seemed confusing, but Bohai was kind enough to give Daunte an extra fishing rod. The rest of the party stayed on the beach while Bohai and Daunte rowed out by themselves onto the ocean. Daunte's heart was pounding, and he nodded stiffly at Bohai's enthusiastic wave from 700 meters away.

"Get ready!" Lanny shouted from the beach. Daunte was surprised he could hear him. "And…GO!"

Someone whistled, and Daunte threw the line out. To his shock a fish immediately nipped the bait. He was so surprised that he lost the fish. But he tried not to let it discourage him. Seconds later another fish nipped the line and he was able to catch it.

The ninety seconds seemed to stretch on. Daunte kept having to move the boat because fish were quickly moving on. But he remained focused and tried to keep catching fish. Almost all of them looked like horse mackerels, but one fish was blindingly white with sparkling eyes. Its appearance startled Daunte so much he almost dropped it into the water! But he regained his composure and tossed it into the barrel on the boat.

"TIME'S UP!" Lanny suddenly shouted. Daunte immediately tossed down his fishing line, and to his relief he saw Bohai do the same. Both of them rowed back to shore, and dread settled in Daunte's stomach. In ninety seconds he'd only caught nine fish. Not even _half_ of Bohai's best record.

"All right, let's see how we did!" Bohai laughed, carrying his barrel over. Daunte ducked his head as he presented his barrel first. "How many do you have, Daunte?"

"Nine," Allise counted. Sharon had to physically restrain Suna and Azul to prevent them from nabbing the fish.

"Ah, good haul!" Bohai said, revealing nothing on his face. He set his barrel down. "Here's what I have!"

Allise moved over and counted his fish in silence. Daunte held his breath as he waited. Allise looked and looked at Daunte. "Six fish."

Daunte gaped at her. The rest of the party cheered. "You won! You won!"

"You won," Bohai agreed, nodding. "So I'll keep my word. I'll join the Liberation Army."

"We're happy to have you," Daunte said, shaking his hand. _Well now, I have someone who can catch fish for us. And I guess these fishing contests will keep the Army amused._

"Oh!" Bohai shouted as he looked into Daunte's barrel. "Look what you have there!" he indicated the white fish.

"Do you know what t-that's called?" Lysander asked.

Bohai nodded. "That's a _divine fish_. It's very lucky you caught that on your first try! It's one of the best tasted fishes in the entire world, but they're so hard to catch! No wonder you beat me!"

Daunte was stunned. _I found the divine fish already?_ He shook his head. _Well, I won't waste this opportunity. I might not be able to catch another one again._

"Everyone, gather around," Daunte said, yanking out the Blinking Mirror. "I'll take us back to headquarters."

"Must we leave now?" Sharon asked. "I have a feeling we're going to find something amazing here!"

"I understand," Daunte said. "But I need to hand over this fish as soon as possible."

Sharon nodded her understanding, but she looked disappointed. "Just…don't forget to bring us back here, okay?"

* * *

Bohai quickly set up his fishing boat for fishing contests just outside the underground cavern. Daunte assembled another party of Lysander, Roen, Felicity, Surya, and Mokuren. And after hesitating for a moment, he decided to bring Arin with him for support as well. Then they went to Viki and were teleported to Žiak. Daunte didn't waste any time; he took the divine fish and went straight to the tavern/restaurant to give it to Yasaka. Luckily there were no lines today, so they were able to go straight in and Daunte handed over the fish.

Yasaka, predictably, was over the moon.

"You've done it!" he cried out. "The final piece of the puzzle! Now I can make the Blue Moon Bird recipe! Now I can bring joy!" he motioned to the group. "Here, come to the party room. I'll make this especially for all of you! You'll be the first in a very, very long time to try this recipe!"

They were guided to an empty party room and seated before Yasaka hurried off. Arin was very excited about trying the food, and everyone else showed mild interest.

"He kind of reminds me of the chef Mom used to talk about," Surya mused aloud. "During the Falenan Civil War I guess they had a passionate chef, and he worked with his daughter."

"Did they mention this recipe?" Felicity asked.

Surya shrugged. "I don't know."

"I-I'll just be glad to eat any food," Lysander said softly.

Minutes later, Yasaka brought out a large tray and set it on the table. He then took a seat at the table, also eager to try the Blue Moon Bird recipe. Daunte looked at the tray closely. It reminded him of the sushi Yasaka had prepared before, but the divine fish still looked raw. There was also rice, and various colorful roots and vegetables on the tray.

"Help yourself!" Yasaka said eagerly. "This is a masterpiece that must be shared!"

The group helped themselves to the meal. Daunte took the fish and the vegetables between his chopsticks and ate it. He was stunned by the sudden rush of euphoria that came over him, and he almost dropped his chopsticks. He looked at the others, and…it was strange. They all seemed to be _glowing_ as they ate the food. He took another bite and almost became dizzy by the surge of emotions. It was the most surreal experience of his life. Not even his first real meal after escaping the Dark Chasm ever invoked such feelings inside of him.

 _I can see why Yasaka sought to recreate this recipe._

"This is incredible!" Arin sighed. "The best food I've ever tasted!"

"Haaa," Mokuren giggled, falling into Surya.

"This type of food would _definitely_ keep morale high with the Army," Felicity said.

Daunte looked to Yasaka, and paused. Yasaka was the only person at the table who wasn't glowing or reacting with glee. The tips of his chopsticks were pressed against his closed mouth, and he looked…displeased. Finally, he shook his head and set his chopsticks down. "No. No, this isn't right."

"Eh?" the group responded.

"This inspires wonderful feelings, but I'm not feeling the full power of the meal," Yasaka complained. "And the flavor—the flavor is off. Oh, I can't believe I messed up such a wonderful recipe so _terribly_!" he hung his head in shame. "I'm a disgrace to the Black Dragon Clan! I can't ever show them my face again!"

Daunte gaped at him. He honestly saw nothing wrong with the dish, and he thought Yasaka had made it perfectly considering he'd based his style and ingredients on rumors. He couldn't find a single flaw in this recipe, but it was apparently far from flawless?

"I don't even deserve to cook here, at this establishment!" Yasaka said dramatically. "All my posturing and ego—this is my punishment for believing I was truly better than I am!"

"Excuse me," Daunte said. "But I think this is perfect and doesn't need changes."

Yasaka shook his head. "You're far too kind, but it needs work. I need to work harder to recreate the Blue Moon Bird recipe. Otherwise I'm a failure as a chef!"

"In that case, why not come to work at our headquarters?" Surya said. "You'll find plenty of soldiers who'd be more than willing to try anything you experiment with."

"Headquarters?" Yasaka looked up. "What do you mean?"

Daunte quickly explained who he was and the Liberation Army. Yasaka's eyes lit up. "Yes…Yes, of course! After everyone you've done, I can do no better than to offer my services to you! I swear I will perfect the Blue Moon Bird recipe, and I will give your Army the best food anyone could ask for!"

"Thank you," Daunte said, reaching out to shake his hand. But Yasaka jumped up. "I-I must get ready to leave! Please take your time with your meal, as abysmal as it may be!" he ran from the room.

There was a long stretch of silence that followed. Daunte looked at the others, and looked at the food perfectly arranged on the tray. "Doesn't…Doesn't it seem like he's overreacting? I don't see anything wrong with this."

* * *

 _Investigations_

 _Secret #1_

 **Name:** Surya Falenas

 **Age:** 17

 **From:** Sol-Falena, Falena

 **Position:** member of the Queen's Knights (currently on-leave)

 _Secret #2_

Surya is the son of the Commander and First Lieutenant of the Queen's Knights, Freyjadour and Lyon. While they got married not long after the Falenan Civil War, Surya was born eleven years after the war. They have trained him from an early age in the art of combat and diplomacy. While technically the oldest Prince of the Falenas royal family, Falena is a Queendom and so Surya is not in line for the throne. Which suits him just fine.

 _Secret #2_

Surya appears to be perfect content with the lot he has in life. He has no aspirations to become Commander of the Queen's Knights, and the Lord Commander is not grooming him for command. Regardless he has had to endure accusations of nepotism because he was allowed to join the Queen's Knights at the age of sixteen. There are many in the populous who believe that sixteen is far too young to allow to join such a prestigious unit, and they believe he only got the position because of his parents. Isn't it curious that people believe such things, when Prince Freyjadour himself took command of the Queen's Knights as a teenager? But this sort of gossip has not deterred Surya. It only makes him want to work harder.

 _Secret #3_

This may surprise you, but Surya considers you to be his best friend. Even more so than Mokuren, if you can believe that. Mokuren however is okay with this and even actively encourages your friendship. Just the other day we overheard Surya talking with Mokuren about some sort of adventure he wants to go on with you after the war is over. It seems he really missed you during the time you guys were apart. It looks like, even after the war, you'll be quite busy.

* * *

 _Investigations_

 _Secret #1_

 **Name:** Mokuren

 **Age:** 17

 **From:** Rainfall, Falena

 **Position:** Bodyguard to Prince Surya

 _Secret #2_

Mokuren has a very eccentric nature that tends to put other people off. But for the most part it appears to just be a façade for people to deliberately underestimate her and to remain taken off-guard by her. She is in fact a very capable bodyguard to Surya and has saved his life on numerous occasions.

 _Secret #3_

As you have been informed, Mokuren comes from the Barows family, which was once a prominent noble family in Falena. However, the reputation of the family was tarnished because of their treasonous actions that led to the loss of numerous lives. Mokuren's father Euram was one such individual, and to redeem himself he pledged his firstborn child to live in the service of the Falenan royal family. Mokuren was this child, and after Euram insisted on the family taking his child Queen Lymsleia gave Mokuren to baby Surya to serve as his playmate and bodyguard. The rest is history.

 _Secret #4_

Though Surya is a member of Falena's Queen's Knights, Mokuren is not an official member. She definitely has the skill for it, and it's not a matter of sexism that excludes her from the Knights. From what it looks like, there has been some resistance from the citizens of Falena of allowing someone from the Barows family to serve on the Queen's Knights. It's a shame that Mokuren's career advancement has been stunted due to the sins of her father, but she doesn't seem to mind.

* * *

 _Investigations_

 _Secret #1_

 **Name:** Israfil Raulbel

 **Age:** 27

 **From:** Sable, Falena

 **Position:** Captain of the Sable Defense Corps (currently on-leave)

 _Secret #2_

Israfil serves under his father, Lord General Dinn, in the town of Sable's Defense Force in Falena. Despite his father's position, Israfil earned his rank with hard work, as you have undoubtedly seen in battle. Interestingly, his last name of Raulbel is not from Dinn, but from Dinn's wife, the lady Salisha. As he was born a commoner, Dinn didn't have a given surname. When he married Lady Salisha he adopted her last name as his own.

 _Secret #3_

Can you believe that Israfil is the oldest of _**seven**_ brothers? Seven! Most of them have scattered to the winds across Falena, taking up various military positions in Sol-Falena, Etrise, Doraat, and the like. There's a rumor going around that the youngest brother doesn't want to follow in his father and brothers' footsteps of fighting and is planning on going to Lunas to serve the Oracle there.

 _Secret #4_

You probably already know this, but Israfil has been in love with Princess Archana since he was a young lad. But did you know that when Archana's husband Lord Darrick died of poisoning, that Israfil stood vigil by his body all night? Apparently Darrick's father was too emotionally distraught to go through with it, so Israfil volunteered to do it in his place. And he didn't even do it to curry favor with the Falenan royal family—he honestly did it because it was the right thing to do. It's very sad though that Israfil has not moved on from his feelings, considering Lady Archana has still not let go of her loss despite the end of her mourning period drawing to an end. I wish them both the best of luck.


	39. Chapter Five: Part Two

I've been battling some pretty severe writer's block. I'm very sorry for the delay, but hopefully I can get over this snafu soon. As an added apology, I've added another long-term poll that you are free to vote in! If you can't vote, then feel free to comment here for your vote!

* * *

Part Two

Having Yasaka in the Army brought an immediate change to Daunte's routine. When he woke up the following morning after recruiting Yasaka, he was startled to find the table in his room covered in dishes full of food. He'd gone to sleep hungry—today was the day they would seek out the inventor and depart for the Northern Continent. But the smell of the delicious food Yasaka had sent up reminded him he was hungry, and he pushed back the covers.

Arin was already sitting at the table, helping himself to the food. Daunte smiled as he joined his little brother at the table. "Good morning."

"Daunte, can you believe all this?" Arin said, motioning to the plates. "I feel like I'm dreaming! I mean, it wasn't too long ago that all we had to eat was stale bread and porridge!"

"It does seem like a longer time ago than it was," Daunte said. He dug in to the food. "I'm amazed that Yasaka can cook up so much food so quickly. I mean he _does_ have a small staff that works under him, but yet he's still able to provide quality meals to the Army."

"Didn't they say he comes from a group of cooks that are the best in the entire world?" Arin grinned. "And now he works for you, Daunte!"

"I might as well enjoy the food while I can. We leave for the Northern Continent today, and not even Caesar knows how long we'll be gone."

Arin paused in eating, and set his chopsticks down. "Daunte?"

"What is it?"

"Can I really come with you?"

"Of course you can. Don't you want to visit the Toran Republic?"

Arin nodded eagerly. "Yes I do! And…" he suddenly looked a little uncomfortable.

"And what?"

"A-And since you said you'll be gone a long time; I don't want to be far away from you Big Brother."

"That's why I'm bringing you with us," Daunte said. "You don't have anything to worry about, Arin. We'll keep you safe."

"Who will be coming with us?"

"Well, Caesar and Silvano definitely," Daunte said. "Sharon will be coming with us as well, and she wants to bring her two dragons. So I can fill my party with two more combatants. I'll need to be careful with who I choose though, since I won't be able to simply swap out members of my party on a completely different continent."

Arin nodded and smiled. "I'm sure you'll choose the right people!"

"We'll be leaving today, so are you all packed?"

Arin shrugged. "I don't have any other clothes besides these."

Daunte felt a spike of shame at his nonchalant statement. He looked towards his outfit, which was hanging up. "I don't have any other clothes either," he said softly. "Besides pajamas."

"Well, it's not a big deal right? The clothes have lasted us for this long, so they're pretty durable."

Daunte nodded and looked back at Arin. "I'll get you another outfit, I promise."

"Daunte, I don't need another outfit. Don't get me one unless _you_ get one yourself!"

There was no use arguing the point, so they finished breakfast and left Daunte's room. Before heading upstairs Daunte decided to stop by Surya's room on the same floor to see how the Falenan prince was doing. Even though they didn't share a room, Mokuren welcomed them inside. Much like Daunte earlier, Surya was sitting down for breakfast and he jumped to his feet when Daunte came in. "Oh, Lord Daunte! Good morning!"

Daunte waved a hand. "You don't need to defer to me, Surya."

"Yes, I do. I'm under your command." Surya sat back down. "But I'm glad you stopped by. Would you like an update on how the refugees are doing?"

"Yes, of course!" Daunte quickly said, rushing forward. "How are the children of the Dark Chasm doing?"

"I've heard that seventy-five percent of the children are making full recoveries, but there's at least thirty children that still need a lot of care. Aunt Lym has decreed that these children be transported to Lunas to finish out their recoveries. Lunas is up in the mountains and the land is protected by the government, so I think the fresh air and clean environment will do wonders for their health."

Daunte nodded. "Thank you guys for doing this."

Surya shrugged. "Aunt Lym is more to thank than I am. But that reminds me—you guys are leaving for the Northern Continent today, right?"

"That's right!" Arin said eagerly.

"Then I'll have to ask you to refrain from taking me along."

Daunte stared at him. "Why?"

"Because I'm Falenan and not Nagarean. With this type of diplomatic mission to the Toran Republic, it would be more appropriate for Nagarean's and Toran's to do such a mission. But don't worry." Surya grinned at him. "I'll be on my best behavior while you're gone."

Daunte slowly nodded. "I…understand."

"Don't worry, Lord Daunte," Mokuren chimed in, smiling. "You can trust Lord Silvano to come with you."

Daunte didn't doubt that but he still nodded again. "Thank you for the report. We'll see you both upstairs."

The brother left the room and headed upstairs. Arin ended up running ahead of Daunte, but Daunte was just pleased to see Arin have so much energy. After hearing about the other children of the Dark Chasm, it was still hard to believe that just a few months prior Arin was so weak that he couldn't stay conscious.

 _But that's behind us, and I'm going to win this war so that it doesn't happen to anyone else again._

"You."

On the fifth floor Arin yelped, and ran and hid behind Daunte as Yuber suddenly appeared before them. Daunte was gradually growing use to his presence and met his emotionless gaze unflinchingly, but he could feel his stomach churn. "Good morning, Yuber," he said.

"Since you summoned me you have not taken me out into a party," Yuber said. "You are not allowing me to do what you have summoned me to do. Why?"

Daunte tried not to sigh with exasperation. "I have been doing diplomatic missions that do not require lethal force, Yuber. I thought that since you like fighting so much, you would've gotten bored if you had come with me when I meet with other leaders to secure alliances."

"You guessed correctly," Yuber said. "But what was the point of summoning me if you're going to spend all of your time sucking up to idiot humans with political power?"

Daunte tried very hard not to lose his temper. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "You're here to help me win, Yuber. Your defense of HQ helped immensely and I'm grateful to you for it. Because of your actions, nobody died when both Sheikhs marched here. You're integral to the defense of this place when I'm not here—"

"Acting on the defensive is not something that I do," Yuber seethed, taking a step closer. "I attack and I kill. You're not utilizing me properly, and it's wearing on my patience. Either put me to better use, or I will find someone else who will."

The fifth floor abruptly went silent from Yuber's threat. Daunte silently debated if he should appease Yuber or put him in his place. After a moment, he allowed himself to get angry and closed the distance between them, getting toe-to-toe with Yuber. "Don't ever threaten me like that again. I summoned you, and you agreed to join my cause. You stipulated that you would only leave if I lost. I'm not losing, so your threats of desertion are empty. And as much as you like to think we're so dependent upon you, the fact of the matter is that you need _us_ just as much as we need you."

"Is that so?" Yuber said challengingly.

Daunte didn't back down. "We're dealing with a force greater than you. It prevented you from entering the capital. _And_ you slaughtered over 300 soldiers of the Holy Army. You're just in as much trouble with the Theocracy as I am, and they'll send people after you."

"I'll kill them."

"And will you be able to kill the person who put up that barrier you can't penetrate?"

Yuber visibly twitched, and his frown deepened. Daunte continued. "You're my ally, Yuber. You agreed to join my cause. You don't get to rescind on that whenever you want. You're here until I win or I lose. _That_ is what we agreed to, correct?"

Yuber was silent for a long moment. Finally, he said, "Put me to better use." and turned around and retreated to his original position without another word.

Arin let out the breath he'd been holding in, and Daunte noticed that the tension on the fifth floor had dissipated. Daunte took Arin by the hand and entered the war room.

"Ah, you're just in time Lord Daunte!" Caesar greeted him. He was wearing his usual grin. "I sent word to the inventor about our plans, and he was absolutely eager to try out his new invention on us! He's expecting us at any time, so let's depart whenever you're ready to go!"

Daunte nodded, and surveyed the people who had gathered before him. He did a minor double-take when he saw that Surya and Mokuren had arrived ahead of him, but he quickly recovered. "I will learn as much as I can in the Toran Republic before coming back. I appreciate the fact that all of you are willing to wait on me like this."

"There's nothing to worry about," Allise said, shrugging. "Lord Caesar is right. Re-establishing the Theocracy after we win may or may not be a good idea. You should see other structures of government before deciding which one is best for our country."

"And we won't be gone very long," Caesar reassured everyone. "The device the inventor has should get us to the Northern Continent fairly quickly."

"I hope so," Sharon quipped. She was holding Azul in her arms and Suna was sprawled on her feet. "It took us almost a month to get down here!"

"Who will be accompanying us, my Lord?" Caesar asked Daunte. "Please choose carefully, as you will not be able to change your party once we leave Nagarea."

Daunte nodded to this and looked out over the people in the room. "Silvano and Sharon. Suna and Azul, and Caesar and Arin."

"That's nice of you," Allise said sweetly.

Daunte hesitated on the last two people. Logically he wanted to bring Roen and Felicity with him, but at the same time he'd brought both of them with him on almost every outing. He trusted his two close friends more than anyone, however he did not want to put the rest of the Army off by continuously bringing them along with him. Plus he felt they could use a much deserved break from traveling all the time.

 _I just hope they don't get upset with me._

After a few moments he nodded and spoke. "Gunther and Viki."

"Me?" Gunther sputtered, pointing at himself. "Y-You want ME to go with you to the Northern Continent?!"

"Is that a problem?" Daunte asked.

Gunther quickly shook his head, and he grinned. "No, not at all! I'm actually thrilled that you've chosen me!"

"So now we have our full party," Caesar said. "Who will you institute as acting commander in your absence, Daunte?"

 _This_ was another matter that he had to consider carefully. The last time he was gone he put both Gunther and Varnaz in charge. He didn't want to show favoritism, but at the same time he didn't want to upset the allies he _did_ have.

 _I could select Varnaz again. However…I think it would be wiser to choose someone else. So that I show my allies how widespread my trust is._

After giving it considerable thought, Daunte made his decision. "Keiran."

"Yes, my Lord?" the former Sheikh stepped forward. Daunte felt his stomach squirm when he saw the allies in the room shift with discomfort, but he knew it was too late to change his mind. "Keiran, until we return you are hereby in command. Everyone, please answer to Keiran as you would to me. Likewise, Keiran, do not overstep your bounds with command."

Keiran nodded and saluted. "Understood, my Lord. Thank you for this."

"Excellent choice, Lord Daunte," Caesar said, stepping forward. "Keiran is an experienced leader and I trust that he will watch over our allies in our absence."

Caesar's words of approval eased the tension in the room, but Daunte did not know if he agreed with him because he thought Daunte made the right decision, or if because he was faking it to keep their ranks united. Daunte nodded to everyone. "Thank you everyone. I will see you soon."

It wasn't until after they left the war room and were away from possible eavesdroppers, that Daunte pulled Caesar aside to speak to him. "Do you believe I made the right decision?"

Caesar looked surprised by the question. "I agreed with your decision, didn't I?"

"Caesar." Daunte squeezed his arm. "Remember what you told me before?"

" _A strategist can always disagree with their commander in private, but in public they must always support any and all decisions they make."_

Caesar grinned at him. "You're very observant, Lord Daunte. It makes you a good leader. But since we're in private I will give you my honest assessment."

Daunte braced himself.

"You did the right thing."

Daunte gaped at him. "What?"

"Choose Keiran Umed to take command was the right thing to do," Caesar said. "Not only does he have the experience for it, but this will serve as his biggest test of loyalty to you. You're probably aware of this, but many in the Army are still suspicious of him and they're suspicious of the men and women who serve under him. Keiran has worked very hard to win over the people here, but even now it's been slow. Giving him command elevates his status because it shows that you trust him. And if he's as successful with command as both Gunther and Varnaz were, then it's the final test he will need to pass to completely win everyone over."

"You're…You're not concerned he might turn on us?"

Caesar gave a slight tilt of his head. "No. And neither are you, because if you _were_ then you wouldn't have given him command in the first place."

Daunte smiled at that. "Thank you, Caesar."

"Anytime."

* * *

The party was assembled, and quickly met with Eliasen to exchange their bits for Potch. Daunte still didn't know how the other man was able to accumulate so much Potch to convert their bits, but he supposed it didn't matter. He would be bringing the Potch back to Eliasen anyway to convert back into bits.

Since they hadn't reached any discernable landmarks on the island before, they had to travel back up there by boat again. Daunte didn't mind, though the travel still made him feel nervous. It was slowly sinking in what exactly he was doing. This wasn't merely traveling to another country. He was going across the ocean to another part of the world he'd never even heard of. And he didn't know when he would be back. His nerves were shot, but he knew as leader he couldn't show just how apprehensive he was about this mission. So he remained stoic and silent as their boat guided them up the underground cavern and towards the Northern Wharf.

They reached the island by early afternoon, and Daunte expected the inventor to be waiting on the beach for them. To his surprise, the beach was completely empty. He looked to Caesar, who shrugged. "He's up in the northeastern part of the island."

"Ah—SUNA!" Sharon suddenly cried out. Daunte looked up to see the golden dragon suddenly take to the skies and fly to the northwest towards a high cliff. Sharon then struggled with Azul, but the tinier dragon furiously beat its wings and flew after the bigger dragon.

"Well, we better get them back before we meet the inventor," Gunther said dryly.

"Oboro mentioned that I should check out that side of the island anyway," Daunte said, looking at the others. "It might be another recruit."

There was a dirt path directly north of them so they followed it. It led them straight until it branched into two paths going left and right. Since the dragons went left they started down that path. Along the way they had to deal with an assortment of enemies, including DoReMi elves and plenty of boars and holly leaves. But thankfully there was nothing too dangerous on the island.

On the far eastern side of the island they found Suna and Azul. Both dragons were digging into the dirt right before the cliff's edge. Sharon ran ahead of them, and Daunte squinted as they followed her. It looked like both dragons were…digging up a rock. A dark purple rock, almost black.

Sharon knelt beside her two dragons and began frantically pulling dirt away from the rock. Daunte came to a stop behind her and paused. The rock looked very familiar…

"I don't believe it!" Sharon shrieked. She succeeded in freeing the rock from the dirt and heaved it up into her lap. Suna and Azul sniffed at it excitedly. "Look, Lord Daunte! Another dragon egg!"

"We're sure finding a lot of dragon eggs in the wild, aren't we?" Gunther asked.

"I'm sure the Dragon Knights will be thrilled that another baby was claimed before it died or went mad," Silvano added.

Sharon snuggled the egg to her chest, but then it began violently jerking in her arms. She squealed and Daunte jumped slightly as the loud 'crack' filled the air. Within seconds the egg seemed to cave in on itself and pieces of shell went flying. Sharon helped to peel the eggshell off and Suna and Azul were croaking as a tiny form fell into Sharon's lap.

Daunte looked down at the newborn dragon Sharon cradled. It was eggplant purple and when the dragon opened its eyes Daunte saw that they were bright yellow. Suna and Azul sniffed and nudged at the dragon, who burrowed its head into the crook of Sharon's arm.

"Wow," Caesar said, folding his arms over his chest. "You have a knack for attracting dragons to you, don't you Sharon?"

Sharon was grinning toothily as she gently petted the dragon. "I'll christen you 'Zǐsè'." She looked up at Daunte. "Can I bring it with us?"

Daunte shrugged. "Sure. You have two dragons already, so one more shouldn't hurt."

"And you can turn them over to your mother too," Caesar added.

But Sharon shook her head and hugged Zǐsè to her chest. "Zǐsè is mine and I won't give her up!"

Daunte shrugged, seeing no point in arguing with her, and stood. "Well, let's go meet the inventor."

They walked back up the path they came and when they reached the fork in the road they instead went right. It led them towards a very steep hill and the group had to tread carefully so they wouldn't fall back down. But even with the steepness of the hill, monsters still tried to attack them. Luckily they lost their footing and simply fell back down the hill.

When they reached the top of the hill, Daunte paused as he saw what lap before him. It was a massively wide clearing littered with hundreds of tree stumps. It was clear that there used to be a forest up on this hill, but now there was not a tree in sight. Only an endless line of stumps stretched out seven hundred meters before them.

Silvano shuddered, clearly horrified. "W-What is this? What happened to this ecosystem?!"

"I think _that's_ what happened," Caesar said, completely unfazed as he pointed ahead of them. Daunte looked in this direction and his eyes widened. At the end of the remains of what had been a forest, there was another large hill where he could make out a tiny house.

And right next to the tiny house was a bird. A giant wooden bird 30 meters long. A human figure was standing on the bird's back shouting down to a smaller human figure on the ground, pulling on a rope to adjust the bird's wing.

Daunte felt his jaw drop, and he looked at Caesar. "W…What is that?"

Caesar grinned from ear to ear. "That will get us to the Northern Continent."

Curious beyond belief (though Silvano was still horrified) the group raced towards the two individuals with the bird. As they got closer, Daunte was able to see the two people more clearly. The person on the ground was a young boy, maybe thirteen years old. His tawny hair was shaggy on his head, and his eyes were obscured by giant goggles. He wore a blue bomber jacket that was slightly dirty, and tanned pants that Daunte couldn't tell were dirty or not. But he had a lot of energy and enthusiastic.

"No, James, no!" the man on top of the bird shouted down to the boy. He was much older, possibly in his early sixties, but he wore the same large goggles. His silver hair was long and loose and wild, and he wore a black bomber jacket that looked more like a trench coat. He had his hands planted on his hips. "If you pull the rope like that, the wing is going to tear off!"

"Got it, Grandpa!" the boy, James, called back up to the older man. He pulled on the rope a little more gently.

"We—oh!" the older man looked up when he saw Daunte and the others. His eyes were freakishly magnified inside his goggles, making them look almost bugish. "Hold fast, boy! We have visitors!"

James immediately stopped what he was doing and took a defensive stance as the group approached him. Daunte saw that he was armed with some sort of mechanical crossbow. "Who are you?!" James demanded. "Are you here to arrest us?!"

"What a magnificent work of machinery," Caesar said, raising his hands as he looked the wooden up and down. "Is this based on the blueprints you found, Lord Hero?"

"What's it to you?" the older man, Hero, asked bluntly as he climbed down. He moved to stand beside his grandson, and he squinted at the group. "Hmm. You don't look like you're from the Theocracy."

"We're not," Daunte said. He gestured to himself. "I'm Daunte, leader of the Liberation Army."

"Oh, yes!" Hero said, relaxing. James also relaxed, and lowered his crossbow. He also pushed his goggles up onto his forehead. "You lot are interested in my skyship, right?"

"Skyship?" Sharon echoed, looking at the wooden bird.

"Yes, skyship," Hero answered her. "Just like the name says, this baby will fly."

" _Fly?!_ " Sharon did a double take.

"Yes, fly," Hero said with mild irritation. He reached into his satchel and pulled out a roll of aging blueprints. "This is lost technology of the Sindarian race! How else do you think they were able to travel all over the world? It wasn't with sea ships, mind you! They flew over land and the sea! How else would you think they would have ruins in every single country in the world? Traveling by air is much safer than traveling by sea!" he paused briefly. "I think. I haven't tested this in the field yet."

"S-So this would fly? Like a bird?" Arin said excitedly.

"It should," Caesar said.

Daunte felt his jaw drop in shock. He looked between Caesar and Hero before he could find the words to speak. "I-If…could this skyship fly to the Northern Continent?"

"Yes," Hero said without hesitation.

"A-And if we wanted to go to the Northern Continent, how much time would it take?"

Hero pushed back his left sleeve, revealing six or seven watches strapped to his arm. He looked at them for a moment before looking up. "If the wind favors us, you would arrive in 26 hours."

"Whoa!" Gunther shouted. "That's just over a day! It took us even longer to reach Falena, and that's our neighboring country!"

"That's incredible!" Viki gushed. "That's almost like teleportation!"

"And to think, this is all based on lost technology," Caesar said. "You could make a fortune on something like this, Lord Hero!"

Hero shrugged. "What does money matter to me? I've brought back to life a tool that the Sindar race used."

 _Reis will be furious that I didn't bring her along to see this,_ Daunte thought dryly.

"So you destroyed the forest in order to build this _thing_?!"

Daunte was startled by the fury in Silvano's voice as he rounded upon Hero and James. "You've killed hundreds of trees and uprooted who knows how many animals from their homes just to advance your selfish desires?!"

James shifted with discomfort, but Hero didn't even flinch. "Of course I did. How else would I have been able to build this skyship?"

Silvano hadn't been expecting his blunt answer, and he looked to Daunte for help. Daunte honestly didn't know what to say. Should he agree with Hero or with Silvano on this?

 _Using the trees allowed for Hero to build this ship, but he_ _ **did**_ _chop down an entire forest to create it._

Before Daunte could respond however, Hero and James were heading to an open door right after the wing. "Come in and see it from the inside!"

Daunte looked at the group, but most of them were already heading inside the wooden bird. Silvano sighed with exasperation and shook his head, but he followed them inside. Daunte did so as well.

To his left when he entered was a large and elevated captain's chair surrounded by switches and two levers. The windows directly in front of the chair were oval-shaped and showed them the sea to the north. Daunte realized that the captain's chair was in side of the bird's 'head'.

"Grandpa will sit there," James said, suddenly coming up to Daunte. "All he'll have to do is pull back on those levers, and it will flap the wings of this bird. And _I'll_ sit there." he pointed to a chair lower in the floor. It also had its own pair of levers. "If we flipped this switch—" he leaned across the chair and pressed a button. Daunte jumped as the floor suddenly opened underneath the chair, revealing the ground…and an _extremely_ steep hill leading towards the ocean. "That's the 'beak' of the ship. Grandpa said the Sindar designed it so that they could use rune magic for an aerial attack."

" _Rune_ magic?" Daunte exclaimed, looking at James. "How will you use Rune magic?!"

"How else?" James said, shrugging. "With the Runes we put into the _aeolipile_."

"The what?"

"The—"

"James!" Hero admonished as he approached them. "This is the leader of the Liberation Army you're addressing! Show some respect!"

"R-Right!" James closed the 'mouth' and straightened. "Sorry, my Lord."

"What is the aeolipile?" Daunte asked Hero.

"Right here," Hero said, leading towards the center of the ship. Daunte noted that both the height and the width of the interior of the ship were about 300 centimeters. On either side of the ship was five seats line up along the walls, each of which had a window, and right behind the fifth row was a spherical object that was humming and slowly spinning vertically, and a stream of steam puffed out every so often. The sphere was surrounded on all sides by small panels. Daunte recognized the symbol of a Fire Rune in the front panel. He walked around the sphere to the right side panel and saw the symbol of a Wind Rune.

" _This_ is the aeolipile," Hero said with pride. "And this is what will get the skyship off the ground. It's a steam engine, but the power of the Wind Rune will help us maintain balance after we take off. And it will ensure that the aeolipile doesn't overheat."

"What's the Fire Rune for?" Gunther asked.

"To keep the water inside the aeolipile heated. And to use as a defense if we're attacked."

"So the power of the Fire Rune would run from here." Caesar gestured to the aeolipile. "All the way to the front of the ship?"

"And the Wind Rune will dispense evenly throughout the ship. That's why the body is so thick beneath us," James chimed in. "We have pipes running through the whole ship! All I have to do is flip the right switches up front, and BOOM! The skyship will be _breathing fire_!"

"Hopefully we won't have to use that," Daunte said. He ignored the look of disappointment in James's face as he turned back to Hero. "Would you mind taking us to the Northern Continent?"

"Sure," Hero said. "We were going to go for a test fly anyway."

"How soon can we leave?"

Hero shrugged. "Thirty minutes."

"Really?" Caesar said with mild shock.

"Sure, why not? The skyship is done anyways, and we were planning on leaving today anyways. James!" Hero headed towards the front of the ship. "Change of plans! We're flying to the Northern Continent!"

"Right, Grandpa!" James said, leaning over his chair again.

"Well…I wasn't expecting this," Gunther said, rubbing his hands together.

"We're going to fly like birds!" Arin gushed, tugging on Daunte's hand.

"It would be better if this was shaped like a dragon and not a bird," Sharon quipped. But she guided her dragons to the last rows of seat. "Hopefully these guys will be seated for the whole trip."

"How do you feel about this, my Lord?" Caesar asked, approaching Daunte.

"They're confident in the capabilities of this ship," Daunte said, looking towards the grandfather and grandson duo tinkering over the controls. "So that puts me at ease."

"I don't like that they used so many trees to build this thing," Silvano said grimly, running his hand along the wall of the ship. But he shook his head. "But I suppose I have no right to complain about traveling in this when I came here on a sea ship that was even _bigger_ than this."

"I'm excited about seeing the Northern Continent," Viki said enthusiastically. "I haven't been back there since…" her brow knitted as she thought about it, and began silently counting her fingers.

"Let's just say it's been a long time," Caesar interjected, smiling. "Why don't we help them finish getting ready so we can leave much quicker?"

Daunte nodded. "Good idea."

The group helped to clear away platforms and ropes, and double checked their inventory just to be sure that they were well prepared for this trip. Daunte's stomach was slightly knotted, but he focused on the excitement he was also feeling in order to keep his face calm. He didn't want to appear nervous to either his group, or to Hero and James.

True to Hero's word, thirty minutes later they were inside the ship and strapped into their seats. Daunte made sure Arin was strapped in before sitting down himself. In the back row, the dragons were fussing at being restrained, and Sharon kept feeding them pieces of raw meat to calm them down.

"Keep the dragons calm!" Hero called over his shoulder as he climbed into the seat. "If they start a fire, it'll destroy the ship!"

"What about us?" Gunther asked him.

"According to the blueprints, skyships like this are able to rise as high as 3 kilometers into the air. What do you think will happen to you if you fall from 3 kilometers?" Gunther flinched, and leaned back into his seat.

"All systems go, Grandpa!" James called up from his seat.

"Okay, everyone!" Hero turned back around in his seat to face the group. "I'm about to release the restraints, so brace yourselves!"

"What happens when you release the restraints?" Arin asked.

"Once I release the restraints, we're going to start sliding down this cliff. The speed will give us the momentum to lift off."

"What if we don't lift off?" Viki asked.

Hero paused for a long moment before bluntly asking, "Does anyone have a Resurrection Rune equipped?"

" _What?!_ " Sharon shrieked.

"Releasing restraints!" James announced, flipping a switch.

Daunte heard a loud 'click' and suddenly slammed back into his seat as the skyship began sliding rapidly down the cliffside. The whole interior shook violently and Daunte's vision rattled. Frightened screaming filled the cabin as the edge of the steep hill rapidly approached, and they could see water. Even the dragons were wheezing with alarm, and Sharon tried to hush them.

"Speed is 150 kilometers per hour!" James announced, unfazed.

"GETMEOFFIDON'TWANNADIEIDON'TWANNADIE!" Gunther was hollering.

"200 kilometers per hour!"

"We're too slow!" Hero announced irritably. _That_ was something Daunte did not want to hear, and he quickly looked at Arin, and the boy looked to be on the verge of tears. His gaze shifted them to Caesar, who was clinging to his seat but did not look concerned. Daunte swallowed thickly and looked back at the front of the ship, just in time for it to plunge off the cliff.

"255 kilometers per hour!" James shouted, still unfazed by the fact that they were about to plunge into the ocean.

"Perfect!" Hero shouted, and pulled back on the levers. Daunte heard a loud groaning sound, and just outside his window he saw the wings of the ship swoosh downward. Hero pushed the levers forward, and the wings sprung back up, and suddenly the ship made an arching turn away from the water and darted towards the sky. Hero repeated the gesture, and within seconds they were even higher. Daunte's eyes widened as they rose higher and higher with each beat of the wings until they leveled out at around 3 kilometers above the surface.

In Lunas, one of the priests rushed to see Haswar. "Lady Oracle! We spot a large object to the west of us!"

"That's vague," Craig observed. "What sort of object?"

"I-It looked like this massive, giant bird flying north!"

Both Haswar and Craig stared at the priest blankly for a long moment of silence. Archana laughed softly and closed the book she was reading. "Better that it flies north than here, right?"

"We did it!" James cheered, pumping his fists.

"I told you we would!" Hero said, nodding with satisfaction.

The rest of the group did not share in their mutual enthusiasm, but rather was relieved that they _weren't_ going to die. Caesar nodded to himself, and released himself to stand up and face the group. "If Lord Hero's calculations are correct, we'll reach the Northern Continent in 26 hours. Better get yourselves comfortable."

Daunte let out a shaky breath and looked out the window. He saw nothing but the blue sea all around them. It was a beautiful sight, but he nerves were still in knots. They had left Nagarea, and the Southern Continent, and were heading towards a land that he'd only become aware of in the last few months.

 _But I need to have this experience to know what government is the best government for Nagarea. I need to see these governments firsthand._

The group kept themselves occupied inside the ship when Hero suddenly announced, "We're flying over the Island Nations Federation!"

"Maybe they can make a Rune Cannon for us!" James said excitedly.

"We should be glad that they _don't_ have Rune Cannons anymore," Caesar mused. "Otherwise they could possibly shoot us out of the sky."

"What's a Rune Cannon?" Gunther asked.

"A lost technology utilized during the Island Nations War."

"Oh, I kind of remember them," Viki said thoughtfully.

On the sea between the islands of Obel and Mordo, the crew of the Lino En Kuldes caught sight of the skyship flying overhead. On the deck the sailors spoke in rapid, concerned tones, not knowing what to do.

At the bow, Admiral Bernadette Egan watched the skyship fly by in her usual stoic silence, her arms folded over her chest. The skipper rushed over to her. "Admiral! What should we do about that thing?"

After a moment, she shrugged. "That…thing has made no threatening gestures towards us so we will leave it be. For now."

"What do you think that is?"

Bernadette pulled out a spyglass and used it to look at the skyship. "Well, it's not an actual bird since it looks made of wood. It looks like a manmade structure, so it must be a ship."

"A ship for the sky?!"

Bernadette lowered it. "It must be. That's one way of crossing our waters without paying any tolls."

* * *

As fascinating as the flight was, after several hours Daunte couldn't help but feel restless confined to such a space. He kept himself busy by speaking with the group and reading to Arin. But as night fell he felt exhausted and settled down into his seat to fall asleep. Unfortunately, the seat was not fit for sleeping, and he found himself slouching in it. He didn't think he could possibly sleep in such an awkward position, but surprisingly he found himself drifting off.

He didn't realize he'd fallen asleep however, and was startled awake by three words he absolutely did _not_ want to hear.

"We're losing power."

In an instant Daunte was awake and standing up. Hero was still at the front flying the ship, somehow still wide awake despite flying without rest for several hours. He became aware of the sound of loud hissing, Daunte turned towards the back of the skyship. James was inspecting the aeolipile very closely.

And the aeolipile wasn't merely blowing steam from the spout anymore. Steam was hissing out from the sphere itself.

"What's going on?!" Daunte demanded, hurrying towards James as the others came awake.

James looked up, but his lack of concern was not reassuring. "The power of the Fire Rune has overpowered the aeolipile and it's overheated. The Wind Rune isn't enough to keep it at steady temperature."

"W-Why didn't you guys attach a _Water Rune_ to keep the temperature steady?!" Sharon demanded, checking on her dragons.

"Huh," James said thoughtfully. "That _is_ a good idea."

"Everyone _please_ take you seats!" Hero called from the front. Daunte and the others complied, and Daunte _did_ feel relieved to see land beneath them. "We're going to have to make a crash landing!"

"Are we near Toran yet?" Caesar called up.

"Does it matter?" Hero barked back.

"Daunte!" Arin cried out fearfully. Daunte looked at him as he strapped himself in. He didn't know what was happening, or if they would even survive this.

"Everyone!" James called out to them. The whole cabin was violently shaking. "Get into bracing position! Lean forward over your lap, and put your hands behind your head!"

"How do you know what the right position is?!" Gunther demanded, though everyone followed the command. "This is your first flight!"

"I don't know! The Sindar blueprints just showed pictures of it!"

Daunte spared one final glance out the window, and was horrified by how quickly the ground was approaching. The last thing he saw was a sea of trees before a sickening crunched rattled in his ears and his vision went dark.

* * *

"…nte! Lord Daunte!"

Daunte's head ached horribly as he regained consciousness. It was difficult to open his eyes, and when he did his vision shook. He had to close them again, but bile rose in his throat as he was helped into a sitting position. He quickly raised his hand and forced down the nausea he was feeling. " _H-Howl_!"

The Rune of Restoration did its magic, and all at once Daunte felt leagues better. He opened his eyes and saw Caesar and Gunther sitting on either side of him. They were sitting on a grassy knoll, and just a few meters away was the skyship. Daunte felt nauseas once more though when he saw the condition of the ship. One of the wings had snapped in half, and the side had a giant hole in it.

"Big Brother!" Arin rushed over to him and gave him a tight hug. "You're all right!"

"I-Is everyone all right?" Daunte said shakily.

"We all had injuries, but since you used your True Rune we're much better," Caesar said. Daunte looked around them and saw Sharon sitting close by with her three dragons. Viki was admiring their surroundings with amazement, and Silvano and walking around in a daze. James stepped out of the large hole in the side of the ship, and Daunte slowly stood up as Hero approached him. Despite the rough landing, the older man looked rather pleased with himself. "Well! I would say that flight was a success! Although we're currently grounded."

"Can you fix the ship?" Daunte asked him. He felt nervous at the prospect of being stuck in a land he was unfamiliar with.

"Of course," Hero said. "The ship is salvageable, but the repairs will be extensive. I would say, with just my grandson and I, we can get the ship back in working condition in two or three weeks."

"Two or three weeks?!" Gunther exclaimed. He looked at Daunte. "That's a long time to be away from Nagarea!"

"We'll be fine," Caesar reassured him, smiling. "It will give Lord Daunte more time to learn in Gregminster. Plus, the added time may allow us to go further north, even."

Daunte looked at him. "What's further north?"

"Well—"

" _Stay where you are_!"

The shout startled Daunte, and he looked up. Within moments they were surrounded, angry faces pointing arrows at them. Daunte looked at each of them, and then paused when he looked beyond the skyship. He saw the aftermath of their landing; it had flattened several trees of a forest, leaving a long line of destruction in its wake.

"What have you done?!" An older man surged forward, his angry face hidden by long red hair. "You have destroyed this forest! Why have you done this heinous act?!"

Daunte then noticed the pointed ears on this man and realized that he was an elf. He looked at the others surrounding and noted that they were also elves. He didn't know what to say to this elf, and Hero didn't seem bothered by the threat against them.

Luckily, Daunte didn't have to say anything. Silvano stepped forward. "It's been a long time, Father."

The older elf looked towards Silvano, and the anger left his face. "S… _Silvano_?! That's you!" He rushed over and gave Silvano a hug. "My son! My son, it has been far too long!"

The elves around them slowly lowered their bows. After another moment Daunte felt a hand clap his shoulder, and he turned to see Caesar grinning. He spread his free arm wide. "Lord Daunte, welcome to the Toran Republic."


	40. Chapter Five: Part Three

I'm very sorry for the delay in this update. Over the summer I found myself saddled with several health issues (just a reminder I'm not as young as I used to be, lol). I'm feeling much better now though, so I should hopefully be right on track with this fanfic. Again, I do apologize for the delay.

As a reminder, there is a new poll up.

* * *

Part Three

Hero and James stayed behind with the skyship to survey every repair that was needed for the ship. Daunte and the rest of the group was escorted towards Lukiae Ende Towayo to the west.

The reveal that Silvano had come home quickly raised the spirits of the angry elves, but the mood dropped again when Hero nonchalantly suggested they use the fallen trees to repair the skyship. Despite his initial anger, Kirkis agreed to allow them to use the trees, much to the consternation of the other elves. But nobody voiced any complaints.

Daunte was surprised by how quickly Kirkis's whole demeanor changed. As Silvano introduced them he shook everyone's hands and he laughed when he saw Sharon and her dragons. Daunte saw the strong physical resemblance between father and son, but he was also surprised by how accommodating Kirkis presented himself. Not that Daunte knew much about elves anyway, but even before the Plague the elves in Nagarea never really showed themselves to humans. Elves seemed to have a strong distrust of humans.

Yet Kirkis did not distrust them. Daunte saw easily where Silvano inherited his open-mindedness.

Daunte's eyes widened when he saw Lukiae Ende Towayo. There were several small houses that formed a circle around a large tree. He quickly noticed that every elf that passed the tree briefly stopped to bow to the tree before continuing on their way.

"That tree is Lukiae Ende Towayo," Silvano told him, looking at Daunte over his shoulder. "It doesn't seem like it now, but the tree will eventually grow large enough to allow us to live inside it."

"Live inside the tree?!" Arin said with amazement, his eyes going wide. "Like a treehouse village? That's incredible!"

"Will all these elves be able to live in the tree at once?" Gunther asked, gesturing to the houses surrounding the tree.

"Thousands of years ago the tree was enchanted by the Six Wise Men of the Forest," Kirkis said. He paused and turned to face the group. "Lukiae Ende Towayo grew so large that it was capable of maintaining a community of eight hundred elves."

" _Eight hundred elves_?!" the group exclaimed. Daunte's jaw dropped as he looked at the tree in question. While it was a large tree, it did not look big enough to even hold _two_ houses! But it grew so big that it held eight hundred elves without collapsing under the weight?!

"But what happened to the tree?" Arin asked softly. "It doesn't look so big now."

Caesar sucked in a sharp breath, and Sharon shifted with discomfort. Silvano looked to his father, but Kirkis thankfully didn't look offended by the question. But his expression did darken. "Twenty-seven years ago, during the Gate Rune Wars, Lukiae Ende Towayo was destroyed by a weapon called the Burning Mirror. It burned the sacred tree nearly to ash, and it almost caused the extinction of my people."

Daunte was horrified by the story. The horror must have shown on his face because Kirkis raised a hand slightly. "It was a horrific tragedy, but I do not collectively blame humans for it. The person who committed the atrocity cannot even be blamed for it because his mind was under the control of a savage Rune. The government who sanctioned the atrocity is gone, and the government that exists now has helped us considerably to rebuild. Looking and dwelling on the past won't make a difference. We can only look forward."

Daunte was amazed by the fact that Kirkis held no ill-will about the near-extinction of his people. His efforts seemed solely focused on the future and rebuilding. And even without the huge tree to have for a home, the village seemed to be thriving regardless. Kirkis was obviously doing an outstanding job as Chief.

 _As a leader he can forgive and forget. Since I too am a leader, does this mean I too must forgive and forget everything that's happened to me?_

They entered the village proper, and a violet-haired elf raced out of one of the houses. "Silvano! Kirkis!"

"Mom!" Silvano shouted, and raced forward to hug her. As she squeezed her arms around Silvano's shoulders, sunlight reflected brightly off a beautiful ring on her finger.

"This my wife Sylvina," Kirkis introduced them. Sylvina continued to cling to her son whilst sobbing, and didn't even acknowledge them. "She has been invaluable in the restoration of our community. You may also know—"

"Oh Silvano, you _are_ here!"

Daunte's eyes widened as he saw Kaylani Falenas emerge from the same house, carrying her infant son with her. A soldier in Queen's Knight uniform trailed after her. Silvano let his mother go to rush to his wife's side. _Wait, they did say Kaylani took a trip here to introduce her son to his grandparents. I'm glad they're doing well._

"I've missed you both so much!" Silvano crushed Kaylani in a tight hug before carefully taking his baby into his arms. "Taurion, are you being on your best behavior?"

 _Taurion? Oh, that must be the baby's name. This is the first time I've heard their child's name._

"I understand all of you have business in the capital," Kirkis said, turning to address Daunte. "But you all have traveled such a great distance. We invite you to rest here for the night."

"Thank you, we appreciate that," Caesar said. "But we'll just stop for a short while before being on our way. It would be in our best interest to cross the Great Forest before nightfall." He looked to Daunte. "It's quite a walk from here to Gregminster, so we might as well relax for a bit."

"Wait, we're going to _walk_?!" Sharon said incredulously. She turned to Viki. "Viki, weren't you here during the Gate Rune Wars?!"

"Y-Yes, I believe I was," Viki responded.

"You were," Caesar said dryly.

"Then teleport us to Gregminster! You've been there before! And both Caesar and I have been there before! We should reach the capital in seconds!"

Daunte's brow raised at hearing this, and he felt a measure of relief. _So we don't have to walk so much. Good._

To his shock however, Viki shook her head. "I-I'm afraid I can't do that."

"Really?" Caesar said with genuine shock. "Why not?"

Viki pointed to Daunte. "Lord Daunte has never been here before. Because he's never been here, I can't teleport us freely until he visits the cities we're heading to."

"…What?" Sharon said flatly, just as Daunte's relief deflated.

"So we still have to walk, then," Gunther mused, shaking his head.

" _What?!_ " Sharon repeated the word with a loud shout, startling several elves nearby. Taurion burst into tears at her scream. "That doesn't make any sense! What does it matter if Lord Daunte has never been to Gregminster?! There are three people in this party who have! That should be enough for the Blinking Rune to teleport us!"

"It won't work," Viki protested. "Lord Daunte must have visited these places first, and he had to have done it within the last few years. _He_ has to have been the one who was physically present at the locations we seek. If he has never been there before, then my Rune will not work!"

"WHY WON'T IT WORK?!" Sharon hollered. She was wringing her fists in fury.

"Now I get it," Caesar said, his voice a little calmer. Everyone turned to look at him and he shrugged. "When I studied the Gate Rune Wars and the Falenan Civil War, I didn't understand why Tir McDohl or Freyjadour Falenas couldn't simply teleport all over their respective countries upon recruiting you, Viki, or obtaining the Blinking Mirror. Both of these young men had positions in society that allowed for them to explore the entire country. Theoretically the whole country then should've been opened to them to teleport to because of the man places they'd previously visited. However, these places _weren't_ open to them immediately. They both had to "revisit" them as a fresh location, in order for your Blinking Rune to recognize and catalog the locations." He hummed, and rubbed at his chin. "Interesting."

"How so?" Daunte asked.

"The power of the Blinking Rune doesn't seem to evolve around where _you_ go or where you have been, Viki. It seems to only reflect what the Tenkai Star has been or where they go." He looked at Daunte. "Could Viki's Blinking Rune then be interconnected directly to _all_ of the Tenkai Stars?"

Daunte blinked, not knowing how to respond. He barely knew how to handle the Rune of Restoration on his hand. Dissecting another person's Rune was beyond his means of doing so.

 _But Viki DID teleport directly to my location from…wherever it was she was before. Maybe Caesar has a point…_

"I-I really don't know," Viki admitted.

"Whatever it is, it means we're stuck walking," Sharon huffed.

"Later," Kirkis reminded them kindly. "Feel free to explore Lukiae Ende Towayo. Come and meet with me at my house when you are done." Then he left with Sylvina, Silvano, Kaylani, and the still crying Taurion.

Daunte held onto Arin's hand as they explored the small town. Many of the elves still treated them with hostility but others were more understanding.

And many of them were…curious characters by themselves.

"You're heading to Gregminster?" Stallion asked. He laughed loudly. "I'll _race_ you there!" before Daunte could even blink he was gone, leaving a dust trail behind him.

"Don't mind these pompous, pointy-eared elves," Rubi huffed. "The elves have always acted like they're better than other races, when they're not."

"This is my first time coming to Lukiae Ende Towayo," Nei told them kindly. She had two human companions—an older man and a girl little—with her who were playing tag. "I'm glad to see the tree thriving, and I hope to someday see it in its full glory."

"I left here many years ago," Roland mused, his expression dour. "Lukiae Ende Towayo was still in its full glory then. While I'm happy to see it thriving so quickly…it is disheartening to see my home gone."

There was an item shop in town, and thankfully a blacksmith who sharpened everyone's weapons up a level. After they had explored Lukiae Ende Towayo sufficiently enough, they headed into Kirkis's home.

"Come, everyone please sit down and have lunch," Sylvina invited them. Silvano was already sitting at the table feeding Taurion, and Kaylani and Kirkis were laughing about something together. The food on the table seemed to consist of a salad and several brazed squirrels.

"I must say I was very surprised by your arrival," Kirkis said as they dug in to the meal. "Did all of you come from the Southern Continent in that wooden bird?"

"Yes," Caesar said, swallowing a mouthful of food. "We arrived here in less than two days."

" _Really_?!" Kaylani exclaimed, her eyes wide. "That's incredible! Can we ride home with you then?! You can drop us off at Falena!"

"Sure," Daunte said. "We'd be glad to have you."

"Thank you, Lord Daunte," Silvano said, smiling broadly.

A thought came to Daunte. "Silvano, why don't you stay here while we go to Gregminster? You can spend some time with your family while we're away from the war."

"Really, my Lord? Thank you so much!" the offer put Silvano in an even better mood than before, and he continued showering his son with attention.

"You're a very kind young man," Sylvina said, smiling.

Daunte shrugged. "You give me too much credit."

"You remind me strongly of Master Tir."

Daunte blinked at this, but Kirkis leaned forward before he could speak. "You're right, he _is_ an awful lot like Master Tir! Albeit more talkative." The couple laughed, and even Caesar joined in on their laughter.

"Where do we go after this?" Gunther asked.

"We'll head towards the Kobold Village," Caesar explained. "From there we'll transverse the Great Forest. Our lot is lucky, though. Before the Gate Rune Wars, the Great Forest was enchanted so that only elves, Kobolds, and dwarves could travel through it. Any human who tried to enter would simply be looped back to the entrance of the forest."

"Really?" Daunte asked. "And it's not like that now?"

"The destruction of Lukiae Ende Towayo removed the enchantment from the Forest," Kirkis said. "So now anyone can transverse the Forest. The Great Forest is beautifully but it used to be quite dangerous, but with the influx of tourists who go into the Forest the monster attacks are at a minimum. Your group should have no problem traveling through it."

Daunte nodded and smiled. "Thank you, Lord Kirkis."

"You saved my daughter-in-law and grandson, and are taking care of my son. Showing you kindness is the least I can do."

Daunte was surprised that Kirkis was aware of these things and looked at Kaylani. The princess gave him a knowing smile before turning to Sylvina to speak to her.

"I'm really excited about this, Big Brother," Arin whispered to him.

"Me too," Daunte whispered back, and dug into his meal.

* * *

The group finished their lunch and headed off towards the Kobold village to the northwest. The elves turned out to say goodbye to them, even as many of them were still angry. Daunte looked to the east and saw Hero and James working without pause on the repairs to the skyship. They made sure the grandfather and grandson team weren't in any danger before leaving.

Although…

"We're fine!" Hero snapped with irritation. "Now please be on your way! You're distracting us from our work!"

"We'll get this fixed up in no time!" James called down to them from the top of the ship. "Give us three weeks and the skyship will be 100%! We promise!"

Daunte remember Caesar mentioning earlier that they may have time to go "further north". At the moment though he left it alone and focused on getting to Gregminster.

The non-Toran members of the group were taken aback by the Kobold Village. The houses were all giant-sized doghouses, and several of the anthropomorphic dog-people were running around. Daunte was surprised though to find the Kobolds friendly to them, and each of them looked like different species of dogs. The village mayor, Kuromimi, recognized Caesar and tried to invite them to his house for lunch. Caesar declined because they'd already eaten, and Daunte couldn't be gladder. He'd glanced inside the houses and didn't see any furniture, only dog bowls on the ground. And the food inside the bowls looked like _dog food_.

The Great Forest beyond the Village looked colorful and majestic. The beauty of the forest, however, was somewhat dimmed by the sheer number of people walking around. Daunte's group walked along the forest path and saw large groups of people examining the trees, having picnics, and a handful of tour groups with a guide shouting through a megaphone.

"Yeah, the elves aren't too happy about this," Caesar told them. "The Kobolds are indifferent though. President Lepant ensures though that both villages get a large percentage of proceeds from these tours."

"But on the upside, we haven't run into any monsters," Sharon pointed out.

Despite not having the setback of running into monsters, the Great Forest was still a massive, and time-consuming forest to navigate. By the time they reached an area with two log bridges, the sun had set and dusk had fallen.

"Go up the stairs towards the upper bridge," Caesar told them. "The other bridge will take us to a dead end." The group complied.

Daunte was apprehensive about the log bridge though, and tested its strength with one foot. It didn't shift or groan underneath his weight. He let out the breath he was holding and proceeded to cross the bridge. Halfway across the bridge however, Arin tripped and grabbed for his hand. The motion startled Daunte, and he fell forward onto his knees. He slammed his right hand down to catch himself—and shouted as the Rune of Restoration suddenly activated.

"What? What?"

Daunte looked up and paused. Directly ahead of him on the other side of the bridge…stood _Viki_.

"Uh oh, looks like I blew it," the girl said with mild nonchalance. She suddenly rushed onto the bridge. "Say, where are we?"

"The Empire," came the reply to Daunte's right. He looked up and saw a teenaged boy standing beside him. Curiously, the boy looked familiar…

"The Empire?" Viki asked the boy. "Which one?"

"The Scarlet Moon Empire," the boy replied.

 _Wait_ , Daunte thought. _This guy…now I recognize him! He's one of the figurines I bought for Arin! He's the Tenkai Star of the Gate Rune Wars!_

"My goodness," Viki said with dismay, raising her free hand to her head. "Almost the other side."

"Other side?" another voice spoke up. Daunte looked behind him and saw Silvano standing there. No…No, it couldn't have been Silvano. The Gate Rune Wars was over twenty years ago. Then…Then this young elf was Kirkis?

"My name's Viki," Viki said, not answering Kirkis's question. "I'm a poor soul with nowhere to go. Won't you protect me?"

 _This…Kind of reminds me how_ _ **I**_ _first met Viki._

"Of course," Tir McDohl replied.

"Oh, thank you!" Viki exclaimed, bowing.

A hand caught Daunte's shoulder. "Lord Daunte?"

Daunte blinked rapidly and looked around. Viki was no longer standing in front of him, but behind him. And Tir McDohl was standing above him any longer. Caesar had his hand on his shoulder and had a look of concern in his eyes. "Are you all right?"

Daunte nodded and stood up. He looked to Viki. "I…I saw you. During the Gate Rune Wars. I saw when you were recruited."

"Oh, really?" Caesar asked.

"Really?" Viki breathed, clutching her staff to her chest. "That…That was when I started! And everything just went haywire!"

"You…look the same now as you did then," Daunte pointed out.

Viki shrugged at hearing this. "That's good." Daunte was a little taken aback by her nonchalance.

"Let's keep moving," Caesar said. "A human village isn't too far away. We can rest there for the night before we head off to Gregminster. It will take us about three days to reach the capital."

"And I still can't believe we can't just teleport there!" Sharon grumbled. She glared at Viki. "It would certainly be more convenient!"

Less than five minutes of walking later led them directly into the Great Forest Village. It seemed enough like a humble abode, but there were _many_ people walking about. Most likely more tourists and backpackers preparing to go into the Great Forest. Because of how small the village was, and because of how many people were there, Daunte didn't expect there to be any vacancies at the inn.

So he was _very_ surprised to find that the inn had beds to spare for the party. Though it made him wonder if people simply weren't staying long, or if it was because they were foreign dignitaries visiting. Either way, he wasn't going to complain.

"I can't believe this!" Arin gushed as they got ready for bed. "What an exciting adventure! Daunte, can we come back here after the war is over?"

"If Hero can fix the skyship, I don't see why we can't come back here whenever we want," Gunther mused aloud.

"I just can't…" Arin shook his head. "Is this real, Daunte? Are we really here? I keep expecting this to be just a wonderful dream, only to wake up back at the Dark Chasm!"

Daunte flinched, and his stomach squirmed. Though the Dark Chasm was finished once and for all, it was hard to forget the horrors both of them experienced. Especially Arin, who almost died because of that hellhole. Daunte forced a smile and sat down beside Arin in bed. "It's real, Arin. And that horrible place is gone."

"Maybe we can make Arin the dignitary for the Toran Republic once the war is over?" Caesar offered playfully.

"Really? You would do that?!" Arin's eyes went wide with excitement.

"Can you guys keep it down?!" Sharon snapped over her shoulder. Suna, Azul, and Zǐsè were curled around her in bed. "We have a long journey ahead of us tomorrow and I want some sleep!"

Daunte nodded to this and looked at the others. "Let's leave as early as possible tomorrow to cover as much ground as we can. With any luck we'll reach Gregminster as quickly as possible."

As everyone settled down, however, Daunte looked to Arin. His little brother looked healthy and overjoyed, but he couldn't help but feel uneasy about bringing the child so far away from their home. It also reminded him of how close Sheikh Faakhir got to seizing their Headquarters. It seemed like Arin was constantly in danger, not helped by the fact that Daunte was leading the Liberation Army now.

 _Nash offered me a place to stay in Harmonia. And Surya offered me a place to stay in Falena. I want to keep Arin by my side, but…maybe it would be better if I sent him away? For his own safety?_

Daunte shook his head, not wanting to think about it any further.

* * *

It was several hours later, deep into the night, when Daunte and his group was startled awake by loud shouting outside. He slowly sat up with confusion when several louds roars startled him. He reached for Arin, as the poor boy started screaming.

"W-What's going on?!" Gunther sputtered, reaching for his sword.

"I think Sharon can answer that question," Caesar said, looking highly amused. The group looked to Sharon, but the young Dragon Knight had a grim expression on her face. "Well…let's go out and meet them, then."

"Who's 'them'?" Daunte asked.

The group got changed and headed outside. Daunte's eyes widened when he saw several _dragons_ within the village proper! He pushed Arin behind him, but also quickly noticed that nobody else seemed alarmed by the dragons. Then he saw the people wearing familiar-looking armor and he allowed himself to relax. _Ah. The Dragon Knights._

"I'm here, I'm here!" Sharon snapped with irritation as she emerged from the inn. "Is my mom—"

"SHARON!" a woman's voice thundered out. The Dragon Knights moved aside as a youthful blonde-haired woman surged forward, her beautiful face twisted in fury. "Young lady, you are in so much trouble!"

"Hello," Gunther said breathlessly.

"Oh give it a rest, Mom!" Sharon shouted back at her. "I'm eighteen years old! I'm an adult, and I can do whatever I want! You're not the boss of me!"

Sharon's mother reached out and pulled on her cheek. "I'm the commander of the Dragon Knight, _and_ I'm your mother! You better believe I'm the boss of you!"

"OW! Ow, ow, ow, ow! Stop it, Mom!"

"Long time no see, Lady Milia," Caesar said, stepping forward.

"Oh, Lord Caesar!" Milia get go of Sharon and turned to the strategist. "I'd heard you had gone to the Southern Continent! How are you?"

"I'm fine," Caesar said. "And yes, I did go to the Southern Continent. We ran into Sharon there, and—"

"YOU WENT TO THE SOUTHERN CONTINENT?!" Milia shouted, wringing her fists in fury.

"I'm standing right in front of you, you don't have to yell!" Sharon barked back. "I was trying to find out if there were Dragon Knights in Nagarea, but—"

"You left without permission, and you took your dragon out of the cave before it was ready! You broke our rules, Sharon, and you _will_ face the consequences!"

"Excuse me for trying to do something on my own for once without someone chaperoning me! You treat me like I'm still a child!"

"I'll treat you like an adult when you _act_ like an adult!"

Daunte felt very awkward witnessing this mother-and-daughter fight. He looked at the other Dragon Knights but they didn't look fazed. He supposed that this wasn't a rare occurrence.

 _Based on Lady Milia's temperament, I have a strong feeling that we'll be leaving Toran_ _ **without**_ _Sharon._

"Lady Milia." A dark-haired man in his thirties stepped forward. A white dragon lurked behind him. "Are those baby dragons with Sharon?"

"Oh hey Futch," Caesar said, waving. "Long time no see!"

"You mean Azul and Zǐsè?" Sharon asked. She hoisted up both baby dragons. "I found them in the wild, and have been raising them with Suna!"

Milia's eyes went wide when she saw the dragon babies, and the anger immediately bled out of her. Other Dragon Knights surged forward to see the babies.

"Incredible!"

"But how can Sharon train the babies so far away from the Dragon Rune?"

"We must take them home as quickly as possible!"

"Allow me to introduce you," Caesar said. He motioned Daunte to step forward. "This is Lord Daunte, of Nagarea. We are here to see President Lepant."

"Oh, so _this_ is the dignitary we heard rumors about?" Milia asked, surveying Daunte.

"He's also been taking care of Sharon," Caesar quickly added.

"Hey!" Sharon snapped.

"Thank you so much for watching out for my daughter," Milia said, bowing. "I'm Milia, commander of Toran's Dragon Knights. To show my appreciation for bringing my daughter home, my Dragon Calvary will escort you all to the capital tomorrow morning."

"Really?!" Arin gushed, clasping his hands in front of himself.

"Well, that'll save us three days of walking!" Gunther laughed.

"Wait, I'm not coming home yet," Sharon said. "I pledged myself to Lord Daunte's cause, and—"

"You didn't get my permission to leave," Milia told her sternly. "You're coming home to face your consequences!"

They got into another arugment again, and Daunte felt a strong headache forming. _Sharon has been very helpful for me, but I don't think I'll be able to overrule Lady Milia on this._

"Excuse me."

"Huh?" Daunte shifted as Futch approached him. The older man was smiling. "You feel familiar to me somehow. Have we met?"

"Daunte's the Tenkai Star," Caesar said. "You've met three of them, Futch, so that's probably why he seems familiar to you."

"I see. So your conflict is guided by the 108 Stars of Destiny too." Futch shook Daunte's hand. "It's nice to meet you. And I'll tell you—from personal experience—that you're going to win."

"Really?" Daunte asked.

"Really."

"You really know that?" Arin asked. "Are you psychic?"

"No," Futch said, shrugging. "I've fought in three wars guided by the 108 Stars of Destiny, and the Stars won those three wars. That tells me you're going to win this war. Or at least you're supposed to."

Futch's words reminded Daunte of Leknaat's words about his war. She'd also spoken with certainty of his victory. So…his victory really was assured? Because he was fated to win?

 _I just hope all of these people telling me that I'm absolutely going to win doesn't jinx me in any way._

"Well now we have an escort," Caesar said, ignoring the ever-increasing volume of Milia and Sharon's arguing. "Let's get some sleep. By this time tomorrow we'll be in Gregminster."

"And everything will be all right," Arin said. "Because it's _supposed_ to be all right!"

Daunte smiled and nodded. _I won't rely on fate telling me I'm going to win. I'll make sure that I absolutely_ _ **do**_ _win._


	41. Chapter Five: Part Four

Part Four

The sun was rising the following morning when Daunte and his group set off for Gregminster. Sharon and Milia were unfortunately still sniping at each other, and Daunte's suspicions that Sharon would be forced to stay behind grew stronger and stronger.

"Here, Lord Daunte," Futch said, motioning him forward. "You can ride with me on Bright."

Daunte was naturally apprehensive about riding on the back of a dragon, but Bright seemed surprisingly friendly-looking for a dragon. Arin was very excited about climbing onto the dragon's back, so Daunte put up no protests and followed suit.

The Dragon Knights took off into the sky, as the residents of the small village shouted their goodbyes at them. The wind blew harshly in Daunte's face, and he felt slight vertigo that he didn't feel in the skyship. He kept his head ducked and his gripped the riding basket so tightly that his knuckles turned white.

Arin, however, had a completely reaction. "I'm flying! I'm flying!" he shouted, spreading his arms wide. He laughed and whooped until he lost his balance and fell backwards into Daunte, but luckily Daunte was able to catch him. Futch was unsurprisingly unmoved by the elevation and speed, and he even seemed amused by their reactions.

It was still morning when they reached Gregminster. Daunte saw the large castle first, before seeing the rest of the capital. From their aerial perspective the city had a quaint but charming appearance to it, but it was still larger than life and splendid. Futch circled the castle twice, and Daunte saw a large balcony at the top with what looked like a full-blown garden. It was then that it really started sinking in that he was there, in a foreign land, seeking to learn and understand government structure.

 _And I'm not even sure I want to lead Nagarea after the war is over. I just want to free my country from tyranny._

The Dragon Knights landed just outside the gates of Gregminster. Daunte began to regroup with Caesar and the others, but Sharon and Milia began arguing once more before he could even speak to Caesar. Suna, Azul, and Zǐsè crooned in response to Sharon's shouting, and the other Dragon Knights looked amused by the display between mother and daughter.

Gunther's face was green when he got off the dragon. "E-E-Excuse m—" he quickly ran for the bushes.

"Wow, that was very pleasant!" Viki laughed.

"They'll be at it for a while," Futch said dryly, obviously referring to Milia and Sharon. "Let's leave them to it. Here, Bright and I will escort you all to the castle."

"That's very nice of you, Futch," Caesar said, though his tone sounded a little bland.

Futch shrugged. "You almost sound like I'm never nice, Caesar. You should know me better than that."

Caesar snorted. "I've heard stories."

Futch and Bright led the way into Gregminster. It was almost ten o'clock in the morning, and the capital was already incredibly lively. Everyone was going about their business, either rushing to work or shopping or simply loitering about. Daunte saw a farmer's market due north near a magnificent fountain, and he wanted to stop and explore the city. But he knew it was important to meet Toran's President first, and didn't ask to stop.

It was very peculiar, though. They were walking straight through the capital with a dragon, and yet it didn't seem out of the ordinary to the people of Gregminster. As they headed north towards the castle, they were frequently stopped by citizens saying hello to Futch, to Caesar, and even to Viki. No one gave Bright a second glance.

 _But they must be used to seeing dragons, since they have Dragon Knights in Toran._

"We're almost there," Caesar called over his shoulder. They reached the draw bridge that would lead them into the castle grounds. Daunte paused briefly before stepping onto the bridge, and craned his neck back as he looked up at the palace. From the ground it looked even more extravagant, but it also looked…imposing. He knew he had to make the best impression when meeting a foreign leader, especially if this would be a foreign leader Nagarea would have diplomatic relations with.

 _I haven't asked Caesar, but…what will President Lepant think when he sees that the Army leader Caesar is assisting is just a kid? Will he think we're a joke? It does seem pretty ridiculous for a teenager to lead a rebellion. I can't imagine he would invite us all the way here to dismiss us, but…_

"Brother?" Arin squeezed his hand. Daunte looked down at him and saw the concern in the boy's face. "I-Is everything okay?"

Daunte looked at his group. He saw that they were concerned too by his hesitation and heat flooded his face. He forced a smile and stood a little straighter. "Yes, everything's fine. I was just admiring the castle."

"It _is_ magnificent, isn't it?" Caesar agreed, smiling. "It's an old remnant of the Scarlet Moon Empire, but it leaves the right impression on the populous and visiting dignitaries."

"You guys coming?" Futch called back to them. Bright and him were already halfway across the bridge. Daunte was amazed that it didn't collapse under Bright's weight.

"Yes, we're coming!" Daunte responded. He nodded to the group. "Let's go."

The group began crossing the bridge. Caesar suddenly, and very quickly, leaned into Daunte's ear. "Don't worry. Everything will be all right."

Daunte was startled, but the strategist walked on ahead. Daunte followed, though his heartbeat was thudding in his throat. They were halfway across the bridge however when something caught his eye. There was an object in the center of the bridge.

He squinted, and then rushed forward. The object in question was pale pink, so it stood out sharply against the dark wood of the bridge. Daunte swooped down and picked it up. It was a pink envelope that was sealed with a crimson seal in the shape of a blooming rose. Daunte flipped the envelope over to see who it was addressed to, but the front only showed the words _'You're Invited'_ written in cursive.

And—It was strange. As Daunte stood there staring at the envelope, he could've sworn he could faintly hear an accordion playing in the distance.

"What's that?" Arin asked, making a face. "Is that a love letter?"

"Lord Daunte!" Gunther called to him from the other side of the bridge.

"I-I'm coming!" Daunte shouted. He tucked the envelope into an inner pocket of his vest and hurried along with Arin into the castle grounds.

Soldiers were going about their business, though many stopped to talk to Caesar, and to the far right Daunte saw a large stable yard. Futch took the opportunity to steer Bright towards the stable yard. "We'll be over here. The last time Bright was inside the castle his feet scratched the floor, so President Lepant doesn't like him being in there." Daunte coughed to cover up a laugh. Gunther was a lot less subtle.

They entered the castle, where they were escorted to the second floor and to a waiting room. Their weapons were confiscated for security measures, but Daunte and the group understood. His jaw hung open as he drank in his surroundings. The interior was even better than the exterior. Every surface seemed to sparkle, and the red carpet crunched under their feet as though it were brand new. The floor was a soft red color, almost orange, and it was so clean that Daunte could see his reflection in the floor. It reminded him of the palace in Sol-Falena.

And much like the Falenan palace, every person he passed in the palace had a smile on their face and a pleasant demeanor. The people seemed very content in Gregminster, particularly in the palace.

 _I'll have to work hard to make sure the people of Nagarea are this happy._

Luckily they didn't have long to wait. They were in the waiting room for only three minutes when a page came in and announced that President Lepant was ready to see them. They leapt to their feet and followed the page out. Daunte looked at his group. Gunther was starting to look nervous, as did Arin. Caesar however looked bored, and Viki looked oblivious. Daunte concerned on keeping his expression blank. He didn't want to appear nervous in front of Lepant, but at the same time he didn't want to appear overly eager.

"Presenting Lord Daunte of the Theocracy of Nagarea, and Lord Caesar Silverberg of the Toran Republic!" they were announced into the throne room. Daunte squeezed Arin's hand, but otherwise showed no hesitation as he led the way into the throne room. On either side of them leading up to the dais were Toran soldiers standing to attention. Along the dais were a half-dozen men and women watching them. And on the dais upon the throne sat a big, hulking man in his sixties. His face was creased with age lines, and his hair was long and silvery, though it had streaks of blonde in it. His goatee however was fully silver. As they approached the dais he rose from his throne, standing at his full height. He looked like a giant, even at his age, and Daunte was very impressed by the way he was able to instill his presence without even saying a word.

 _Well it's probably why he's President._

"Caesar!" President Lepant greeted, startling the group with his booming voice. To Daunte's surprise he left the dais and surged forward to crush Caesar with a one-arm hug, grinning from ear to ear. "Long time no see! I see you're living up to your family name aiding in the liberation of a country from tyranny! Good on you!"

"Y-Y-Yes!" Caesar grunted. He struggled slightly in Lepant's hold but the older man didn't let him go. "Apple arrived yesterday so you better see her!"

"O-Oh, she came from—"

"But never mind that, Caesar! Introduce me to your commander!" Lepant finally let him go, leaving Caesar gasping for air for a few moments. Daunte tried to keep a straight face at this spectacle, but he choked on a laugh.

"A-Allow me to introduce my Lord, Daunte," Caesar introduced, motioning to Daunte. "This is Arin, my Lord's younger brother. And this is Gunther, and I'm sure you remember Viki."

Lepant's eyes went wide when he saw Viki, and he surged towards her. Viki yelped and jumped back slightly. "Wait—it _is_ you! Viki!" he barked out a loud laugh and slapped her on the back. "I last saw you almost thirty years ago, and you look like you haven't aged a day!"

"A-Ah," Viki laughed a little, nursing her back with her free hand. "I'm constantly on the move, so…"

"So this is Lord Daunte," Lepant said, turning to Daunte. He was clearly sizing Daunte up, and Daunte fought the urge to shrink a little. Lepant looked him over in silence for a long moment before he spoke. "How old are you?"

"Seventeen," Daunte responded.

Lepant nodded. "I see. _He_ was around your age too. Despite his youth, he proved himself to be the best commander I've ever met. Don't allow anyone to dismiss you for your age, for if a Silverberg follows you then you know you're doing right."

"I have a knack for following young leaders," Caesar said, shrugging.

Lepant folded his arms over his broad chest as he sized Daunte up once more. "You have reached out to me to learn about rule, correct?"

"That's right," Daunte said. "I want to learn from you about how a Republic is run."

"You don't plan on maintaining a Theocracy once you win your war?"

Daunte blinked slowly. He wasn't expecting that question. He quickly answered. "I don't know yet what's the best government for Nagarea. We're an isolationist country, so the Theocracy is the only form of government I know. That's why I've traveled here to learn about the structures of other government types. I want to see how a Republic is run, and I want to see if that's what's best for Nagarea."

Lepant weighed his words in silence for another long moment. Daunte held his breath, and waited to see what the other man would say.

Lepant suddenly nodded his head to the left. "All of you, follow me."

Daunte looked to Caesar, but the strategist gave an encouraging nod. Flanked by castle guards, Lepant escorted them towards a long winding hallway. They proceeded to then climb several flights of stairs. Daunte wondered where Lepant was leading them, and why they couldn't simply continue the audience in the throne room. But he remained silent.

Finally, Lepant led them through another set of doors and Daunte's group found themselves back outside. His eyes widened at the massive garden stretched out before them. He quickly realized this was the balcony garden he'd seen when he was flown here. It looked even more magnificent than from his aerial view.

"Twenty-one years ago, the Gate Rune War ended here in this garden," Lepant said, gesturing them forward. "I did not personally witness it, but Master Tir faced Emperor Barbarossa and defeated him here. From here, the Scarlet Moon Empire ceased to exist, and the Toran Republic came to be."

"Oh, Lepant!" an aging but beautiful woman came out from around a corner of flowers and hurried over to the group. She had a makeshift bouquet of flowers in her arms. "I thought I heard your voice! Are these the dignitaries you invited!"

"Yes, they are," Lepant said, giving her a hug and a kiss. "Everyone, this is my wife Eileen. Eileen you remember Caesar and Viki, and this is Lord Daunte."

"It's a pleasure to meet all of you," Eileen greeted, bowing. "I hope you enjoy your stay here."

"Where is our idiot useless son?" Lepant asked.

Eileen sighed, and gave him a stern look. "You shouldn't talk about our only child like that."

Daunte was surprised to see Lepant flinch under her glare, but he quickly recovered himself. "Sheena is a thirty-six-year-old unmarried slacker, who—"

"What," Eileen interrupted him coldly. "Have I told you about insulting our son in front of strangers like that?"

Her demeanor gave Lepant pause, and he bowed his head slightly. "You're right, as usual. I'm sorry, Eileen."

"But to answer your question," Eileen said, her tone shifting back to cheerful. "Sheena is downstairs."

"I see." Lepant turned back to the group, and everyone quickly adverted their gazes. "As I was saying, Toran was founded as a Republic to give all the people the opportunity to vote for a leader every several years. They will never again feel compelled to suffer under a leader they did not choose, and who cannot be removed from office."

"So a Republic has a leader, a President," Daunte said. "Who is voted in by the people and may be voted out?"

"Lepant has been President of the Toran Republic since the very beginning," Eileen said. Pride was shining in her voice and she settled a hand on Lepant's forearm. "With every election he wins in a landslide. Several times he's run unopposed, he's _that_ efficient and popular as a leader."

"That's incredible," Daunte said, his eyes widening.

But Lepant only huffed, and shook his head. "I've tried to sign into law a mandate that requires term limits, but the citizens do not deem it necessary. They may see me as the perfect leader, but I'm not. Truthfully, the only reason I do not simply resign is that I'm holding my seat for the true leader of this country."

"Do you mean Tir McDohl?" Caesar asked.

" _He_ was the one who freed us from tyranny," Lepant insisted. " _He_ was the one who sacrificed so much for this country. There is no one more deserving of the title of President than Master Tir. But he will not take the position! Believe me, I've tried to convince him to take his rightful place here, but he either refuses me or disappears without a trace! It's so frustrating that he will not reap this reward!"

"But Master Tir didn't liberate us to take power for himself," Eileen said softly. "He did it because it was the right thing to do."

This reminded Daunte too strongly of his own situation with Nagarea. He didn't take leadership of Nagarea's Liberation Army with the intention of becoming the leader of the whole country. He just wanted to help his fellow citizens.

 _I wonder if all the Tenkai Stars face this same situation._

"But enough of this," Lepant said, waving his hand. "I've given you the basic breakdown of the Republic, and how I became President. If you would like, I will give you more information in the coming days. In the meantime, I have good word that Master Tir is in town. His mansion is open to the public, so I imagine that he will not mind if you stop by and see him."

"Yes!" Caesar nearly shouted, grabbing Daunte's free hand. "Yes, let's go and see Tir McDohl! You will gain even greater leadership insight by speaking with the hero of the Gate Rune War himself!"

"Does he have a True Rune too?" Arin asked.

"'Too'?" Lepant echoed, and Daunte inadvertently stiffened.

"A-Ah, let's go and see this Tir McDohl now!" Gunther interjected. He hooked his arms underneath Daunte's. "Lovely garden, and lovely wife you have there!"

A shadow fell over Lepant's face, and he stepped in front of Eileen. "What was that?!"

"AH!" Caesar shouted, raising his hands and putting himself between Gunther and Lepant. "D-Don't mind Gunther! He's an idiot who speaks without thinking!"

"HEY!" Gunther shouted.

* * *

Five minutes later, Daunte's heart was still pounding in his chest as they hurried away from the throne room. _Wow…I thought Lepant was scary, but his wife is plenty scary herself!_

"I-I'm sorry," Arin said, tears in his eyes. "I'm sorry I told them about the True Rune!"

"No, no, it wasn't your fault," Caesar reassured him. "I should've warned you guys that President Lepant can be…quite outrageous when it comes to defending Lady Eileen. But you stay on his good side, he's really quite funny and jovial."

"By Nagar, what are his hands made of?!" Gunther complained, nursing his shoulder. "All he did was squeeze my shoulder, but I think he broke my clavicle!"

"Next time, don't hit on another man's wife in front of him," Caesar admonished him. "Especially if he's the President!"

"I—"

"Well, well, well. So _you_ were at the center of all that commotion, Caesar?"

Caesar snapped to attention and turned around. "Hey, Apple!"

Daunte turned to see a brown-haired bespeckled woman in her mid-thirties approaching the group. She wore a friendly smile and Daunte couldn't help but smile back. "Long time no see, Caesar. Is this leader you are now following?"

"Yes, he is. Lord Daunte, allow me to introduce Apple. She's a veteran strategist of the Gate Rune War, Dunan Unification War, and Second Fire Bringer War."

Daunte was immensely impressed with her résumé, but Apple waved a dismissive hand. "I was merely a supporting strategist in those three wars. And in the case of the Dunan Unification War, I was _grossly_ underprepared for it."

"Oh don't sell yourself short," Caesar told her.

"That's right," Gunther immediately supplied, sliding up to Apple. "A beautiful woman such as yourself should always—ACK!" Gunther shouted as Apply casually reached up and pulled on his earlobe.

"I hope you'll forgive me," Apple said tersely, her smile twitching. "But you're _not_ my type."

"Ow, ow, ow, OW—I'm sorry, please let me go!"

"How long are you going to be in Gregminster, App?" Caesar asked, looking unfazed by her behavior.

Apple abruptly let Gunther let, letting the younger man tumble to the floor. "I could say the same for you, Caesar. Is your lordship leaving soon?"

"No, President Lepant invited Lord Daunte to stay for a few days and learn more about our government. However, we're currently stranded here, as our means of transportation is undergoing repairs."

"Really? Stranded? For how long?"

Caesar shrugged. "The estimate is nearly one month."

Apple held a hand to her chin thoughtfully. "You plan on staying here in Gregminster for a month?"

"Probably not. Lord Daunte will learn about the government structure of a Republic in less time than that."

"He will?" Arin asked with amazement.

"I will?" Daunte asked at the same time.

"Then do you intend on taking Lord Daunte to Dunan then?" Apple asked Caesar. "Dunan is also a Republic, but I'm certain both President Teresa and even Shu can provide even more insight for Lord Daunte."

"I was thinking about it," Caesar said, smiling.

"Wait, we're going to visit _another_ country?" Gunther asked, picking himself up off the floor. "I thought our mission here was only to learn about the Toran Republic's government!"

"Dunan is just north of here, and we still have a lot of time to kill before Hero and James are done with their repairs," Caesar said. "After we're done here, the travel time it will take to travel to Muse and back will ensure they'll be done by the time we come back."

"And what if the President of Dunan is as intense as Toran's President?" Gunther asked. He noticed people immediately stop to stare at him and he glanced in their direction. "No offense."

"None taken," Apple said, her tone a little kinder. "But don't worry. President Teresa Wisemail is more…subtle than President Lepant."

Gunther breathed out a sigh of relief, but he looked at Daunte. "Do you want to do this, my Lord? Travel to a second foreign country while we wait for repairs?"

Daunte weighed his options. He'd come on this trip expecting to only stay in the Toran Republic. He even fancied the idea of touring the country and seeing the various towns. At the same time however, he wanted to learn as much as he could. And both Caesar and Apple were confident that he could learn even more by traveling to Dunan.

 _It might be dangerous to do so much traveling so far from home, but since I'm already here I might as well take the opportunity._

Daunte decided, and nodded. "I would like to visit Dunan after we're finished here."

"Great!" Caesar shouted uncharacteristically, slapping Daunte on the back. "I'll draft a letter to President Teresa and get it sent out as quickly as possible!"

"I too will write a letter on your behalf," Apple said. "I'll send one to Shu and ask him to assist you when you arrive in Muse."

"Who is Shu?" Daunte asked Caesar.

"The chief strategist for the Dunan Army during the Unification War," Caesar told him. "He's one of the best strategists I've ever met. Although he can be kind of…" he gestured with his hand as he tried to think of the right word to say. Finally, he shrugged. "He's different."

"He was expelled from Mathiu's school for being greedy," Apple said, but her tone and expression were gentle.

"Who's Mathiu?" Gunther asked.

"My first cousin once removed," Caesar said matter-of-factly. "He died during the Gate Rune War."

"I-I'm sorry for your loss," Daunte said, but Caesar shook his head. "I never met him. Apple here was his star pupil."

"Mathiu was one of the greatest men I've ever met," Apple said, her tone turning somber. "I was proud to—"

"Well, well. Have you come all this way to see me, Apple?"

Apple's face darkened, and Caesar rolled his eyes as a blonde-haired man in his mid-thirties sauntered over. He wore a cheeky grin that quickly got on Daunte's nerves. "I heard the Old Man screaming his head off so I _had_ to see why. Lo and behold here you are. And with Caesar too, no less. Did you miss me?"

"No," Apple said abruptly, her tone sharp. "I haven't missed you. Truthfully, I haven't given you a second thought until this very moment."

The man looked stunned for a moment by her cold words, but the moment quickly ended and he snapped the smile back on his face. "Oh don't be that way, my sweet Apple. Not after ev—"

"Excuse me Sheena, but this Lord Daunte," Caesar said, pulling Daunte forward. "Lord Daunte, this is President Lepant's son Sheena."

"Oh, hi," Sheena said disinterestedly, thought he did a slight double-take when he saw Viki. "Are you all here on off—"

"Yes they are, and they are very busy," Apple said, directing the group away. "Here, let's go and take care of that business we were speaking about."

Daunte didn't know what she was talking about, but he had a feeling she was just making up an excuse to get away from Sheena. He knew he could call her bluff or play along. Ultimately he said, "Yes, let's take care of that business."

"A-All right, but don't be a stranger Apple!" Sheena called after them. Daunte glanced over his shoulder as they hurried off to see Sheena standing there staring after them for a long period of time. Then a maid walked by and he promptly hurried after her.

 _He reminds me of someone,_ Daunte thought, and glanced at Gunther. Gunther however was making a face. "Man…that guy was a creep! Hitting on a woman out of the blue, and then chasing after another?"

Caesar coughed loudly and harshly, and Daunte stared at him incredulously. Arin however was blunt. "But you do that too, Gunther!"

* * *

Futch had taken Bright to the market, and Daunte said the Dragon Knight physically restraining the large dragon from eating the livestock on sale. Everyone thought it was amusing, even the vendors (despite the risk to their product). Apple and Caesar escorted Daunte and the others to Gregminster's inn southwest of the fountain in the center of the city. A kindly woman in her late fifties came out from behind the counter to greet them personally. Both Caesar and Apple referred to the woman as Marie, and Caesar quickly explained to Daunte how she was instrumental in Tir McDohl's escape from Gregminster two decades earlier by giving him shelter from soldiers hunting him. Marie had a warm smile and a maternal disposition, and Daunte felt at ease in her presence. Strange though…her demeanor was so very similar to Tidur, who was also an innkeeper. Were innkeepers just naturally inviting and sweet?

 _She protected Tir like Tidur protected me. Maybe these two women have the same Star of Destiny?_

"Well I must be on my way," Apple said as the group got settled in their rooms. "I want to get that letter written quickly, and I have other matters to take care of. Are you all going to rest for the day?"

"We're going to surprise Master Tir McDohl at his mansion," Caesar said.

Apple arched an eyebrow at his words. "Surprise him? Why don't you send him a request and see if you can stop by? That would be politer, Caesar."

Caesar shrugged. "I've heard rumors he prefers keeping to himself. I've heard he's tried to dissuade Gremio from traveling with him, with no luck. I figure if we surprise him at home, we can't meet him before he tries to run out on us."

Apple shook her head. "If Master Tir prefers to keep to himself, then he has a good reason to."

"I don't doubt it. But if we surprise him, it'll increase our chances of meeting him."

Apple sighed heavily, but smiled at Caesar. "If he throws you out Caesar, don't say I didn't warn you."

"Don't worry," Caesar told her. "I have this planned out. We'll go at dinnertime when he'll be off-guard."

Apple barked out a laugh. "Caesar, you're going at dinnertime to eat some of Gremio's stew! Just admit it!"

Caesar shrugged again. "I won't say no to free food."

"Well, good luck to all of you." Apple took her leave.

"I'm full of energy right now," Gunther said, standing up. "Can we go and explore the city?"

"Absolutely," Caesar said. He looked to Daunte. "Unless you would like to rest, my Lord?"

Daunte knew he could take the opportunity to rest, or walk around and sightsee before they "ambush" Tir at this house. He was tired but he _did_ want to see Gregminster, so he stood up. "I want to go out."

"Me too," Arin chimed in.

"I-I'll join you as well," Viki said, clutching her staff to her chest. Her nose twitched however, and she arched her head back. "Ah…ah…ah!"

Caesar quickly reached out and plugged her nose. She sneezed quietly, and it luckily didn't trigger her Blinking Rune. "I hoped you packed your nose plug, Viki…"

Thankfully she did, and the group set out into the city proper. Futch caught up to them as they reached the market. "There you are! I didn't notice you leaving the castle!"

"Well you were in a tug-of-war with Bright," Caesar pointed out.

Futch scoffed and shook his head. "He's usually very well behaved! But those chickens—I had to pay 1,000 Potch for all those chickens he ate!"

"Poor chickens," Viki said softly.

"Better chickens than people though!" Gunther laughed.

"So, what are you guys up to now?" Futch asked.

"Can I ride the dragon again?" Arin asked.

"We're exploring the city," Daunte quickly interjected.

"That's cool! Can I come along? I checked with another Dragon Knight, and Lady Milia and Sharon are _still_ fighting! I don't know where they get the energy from!"

Gunther chuckled. "There's nothing wrong with an energetic woman…'

"I think General Kwanda Rosman's house is somewhere around here," Caesar said, gesturing to the northwest of town. They began moving in that direction. "Kwanda Rosman fought during the Gate Rune War. He—"

"He destroyed the elf village," Futch said bluntly.

" _What?!_ " Daunte exclaimed.

"Why would he do that?!" Arin demanded.

"It wasn't his fault, really," Caesar said over his shoulder. "He was under the control of a cursed rune."

" _I_ never saw the rune in action," Futch said. "But they called it the Black Rune, I think. The Rune gives you unimaginable power, but at the cost of your sanity."

"It works more like possession," Caesar added. "The Black Rune—or Conqueror Rune, as it's also called—makes you act possessed. Based upon the actions of the two people it was attached to during the Gate Rune War, it robs you of your humanity. You're incapable of feeling regret or remorse, and you actually _delight_ in the suffering you inflict on others. The two people who were under the power of this rune did horrible, horrible things…things they would _not_ have done had they not been under the influence of the Rune."

" _The person who committed the atrocity cannot even be blamed for it because his mind was under the control of a savage Rune."_

Daunte remembered Kirkis's words and his stomach twisted in discomfort. He couldn't conceive of ever being under the power of such an evil rune. Being trapped inside your own body while your physical being murders and brutalizes people around you. Why would such a Rune even exist?

"So this Kwanda was unwittingly given this Rune?" Gunther asked, his tone full of disgust. "But you said a second person was given this Rune. Who were they?"

Caesar suddenly broke out in a short, unexpected laugh. "Oh, it was—"

"Oh no. Oh no, oh no, oh no, oh no…"

Daunte looked to his left. Two meters ahead of him and not far from a set of closed gates that were decorated with large red and white roses stood a man wringing cream-colored gloved hands. He looked to be in his mid-twenties, and his midnight blue hair was loose and wavy down his back. He wore a waist-length cape that was a lighter shade of blue than his hair, a matching waistcoat over a long-sleeve frilly white shirt, cream-colored breeches, and black knee-high boots. A fencing sword was strapped to his waist.

"Oh no," the man fretted again, pacing nervously. His dark eyes were full of worry. "I lost it. I can't believe I lost it. How am I supposed to win if I can't even get in there?"

"What's wrong with that guy?" Arin asked.

"Wait," Gunther spoke up, looking confused. "Does anyone else hear that?"

"Hear what?" Viki asked.

"Wait, I'm hearing something too," Futch said, his face twisting up in confusion. Bright raised his head and craned his neck, listening as well.

Caesar rubbed at his ear and frowned. "I hear…something too."

Daunte concentrated on his hearing as well. He heard the activity of the market behind them, but…yes, he something too. He'd heard it before on the bridge. The faint sound of an accordion.

"It sounds like an accordion, doesn't it?" he asked out loud.

Both Caesar and Futch stiffened. "An accordion?" Caesar asked.

"Hey, it _does_ kind of sound like an accordion," Gunther said. "Where is it coming from?"

"Oh man," Caesar said, slapping his hands over his eyes. "This only means one thing."

"What?" Daunte asked.

Caesar pointed in the distressed man's direction. "That man is a _Narcissist_."

"What's a Narcissist?" Arin asked, struggling with the word.

"Just as the name suggests," Futch said grimly, folding his arms over his chest. "Narcissists are obsessed with themselves. They are men and women in love with beauty and…the like. They also have very outrageous behavior, and can be—annoying."

"The universe also seems self-aware of them as well," Caesar said dryly.

"How so?" Gunther asked.

"The accordion that we're faintly hearing in the air? It's going to get louder if we approach that young man and speak to him. For…whatever reason, music will fill the air when you speak with a Narcissist. And you will continue to hear this same melody after you speak to the Narcissist and after you walk away from them. The melody will then follow you for an extended period of time until you put some time and distance between yourself and the Narcissist."

"But why do we hear music?" Arin asked. "Where does it come from?"

Caesar shrugged. "It is one of the greatest mysteries of this world. Well, not _nearly_ as mysterious as how Crowley and Mazus's battle went, but—"

"I've dealt with my fair share of Narcissists across three wars," Futch said, shaking his head. "They're hardly worth the effort. You'd be better off not talking to him."

Daunte wasn't exactly eager to have a song literally follow him, but at the same time he was concerned for the other man as he was clearly in distress. He looked to Caesar. "He looks like he needs help. I would like to help him."

"Whatever you believe is best, my Lord," Caesar said.

"You're going to regret it," Futch warned.

Despite this, the group followed Daunte. Daunte did indeed hear the mysterious accordion melody increase in volume the closer he got to the fretting man. By the time he came to a stop directly in front of him, the accordion was a soft hum in his ears.

Then Daunte spoke. "Are you all right?"

The man turned a tear-streaked face towards Daunte. And suddenly, the music surged in volume as the man opened his mouth to speak. "Oh, this is terrible! I've lost it! I've looked everywhere and I've lost it! How am I supposed to win if I can't even get in there?"

"What have you lost?" Daunte asked, but he could barely hear his voice over the accordion.

"What else?!" the man wailed, gesturing frantically to the gates behind him. "The wonderful Milich Oppenheimer is having a grand party! A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-And Vincent De Boule himself is going to be there! T-They're having a Male Beauty Contest, and _I_ was invited to compete! But my—my _**invitation**_! My invitation is gone! I cannot get inside the mansion without it, and—ah!" he held a hand to his forehead dramatically. "How am I, Luciano, supposed to prove to the world that I am worthy of the title of Male Beauty if I can't even attend the party?!"

Daunte realized that his mouth was hanging open and he clicked it shut. He looked at Caesar and Futch and both men looked exhausted. Gunther looked completely perplexed, and Viki looked oblivious. He looked back at Luciano, but he honestly didn't know what he was supposed to say. He'd never quite met a person like this before.

 _Are…Are all Narcissists like this? And will I always hear this song whenever I speak to one?_

Arin tugged frantically on his hand and Daunte looked down at him. "Brother! The invitation—do you have it?!"

Daunte remembered the pink envelope he'd found and quickly pulled it out and held it out to Luciano. "I-Is this it?"

Luciano stopped crying, and his eyes went wide when he saw the envelope. He snatched it from Daunte. "Yes…yes, this is it!" He clutched it to his chest and shouted in joy, startling the group. "This is wonderful! Now I can attend the party!" he looked at Daunte. "Thank you, kind sir! You don't know how important this is to me!"

"I'm glad I was able to help you," Daunte said.

Luciano suddenly reached out and grabbed Daunte's free hand. "No, I can't accept that! I must repay you! You went to the trouble of finding this invitation for me, I can do no better than reward you!"

 _Is he a Star?_ Daunte wondered. Before he could ask, Luciano continued. "W-Why don't you all come with me to the party? You can be part of my entourage!"

"Really?!" Arin asked with excitement.

"Really?" Gunther asked, his tone duller.

"Well, I _haven't_ seen Milich Oppenheimer in years," Caesar said reluctantly. "If you would like to go, Lord Daunte, then I will go with you."

Luciano's eyes went even wider. "Y-You're a _lord,_ young man?! Then you must come with me! Milich Oppenheimer will be honored to have a lord as his guest!"

"I'll have to decline," Futch spoke up. "I don't think Milich would appreciate having Bright in his house. We'll see you guys later."

"So," Gunther said slowly as Futch and Bright went on their way. "…Are we attending this party?"

Neither Caesar or Gunther were enthusiastic about this, but Daunte felt it would be rude to refuse Luciano's offer. And he was a little curious about what this party would be about. So he nodded and forced a smile. "Thank you for the invitation, Luciano."

Luciano nodded. "Let's hurry. I'll win that Rose Brooch yet!"


	42. Chapter Five: Part Five

Before I start this chapter, I have some news for you guys. I recently tested positive for rheumatoid arthritis. It was very surprising to receive this diagnosis at my age, but I'm staying positive about it. As it stands right now though it's difficult for me to sit still and type for long periods of time, so I'm afraid these updates are going to continue to be on a lower frequency than before. But I intend to see this fanfic all the way through to the end, especially since I spent a year planning it and even more so knowing that people enjoy this story. Thank you for your patience, and I hope you enjoy this chapter.

* * *

Part Five

With Luciano's invitation, Daunte's group had no problem getting past the guard at the gate of the mansion. The magnificent double doors opened wide for them, and the group entered inside to see a sea of extravagantly-dressed men and women in a large open foyer. Yellow wardrobes lined the wall, and a buffet table filled with rich appetizers stood near the stairwell at the back. Two photorealistic paintings of two men hung on either side of the stairwell. Daunte looked at their plaques and read the names. The left was titled "Charlemagne", and the right was titled "Schtolteheim Reinbach III".

" _I am_ _Schtolteheim Reinbach III! The greatest swordsman in all of Middleport and all of the Island Nation Federations!"_

Daunte arched an eyebrow as he remembered Nash's proclamation, and looked at the painting of the seemingly arrogant man. _So this is who Nash was referring to?_

"Everything okay, my Lord?" Caesar asked him.

Daunte gestured to the painting. "When I first met Nash and Sierra, Nash told soldiers that his name was Schtolteheim Reinbach III."

"Ah," Caesar said, nodding. "It's not surprising. For some reason, people love invoking Schtolteheim Reinbach III's name if they travel incognito."

"How come?" Gunther asked.

Caesar shrugged. "Apparently he had a considerable amount of luck. Maybe people wish to have some of his luck when they travel?"

"Maybe it's because it's a funny name?" Arin asked, laughing.

The partygoers were speaking with rich vocabularies in lofty tones. In the center of the room Kasios was playing a harp, but Daunte could not hear the notes over the accordion ringing in his ears.

"I-I-I can't believe it," Luciano sighed, clasping his hands to his cheek. "I can't believe I'm attending a party for _the_ Milich Oppenheimer! And I'll be participating in _the_ Male Beauty Contest! This is a dream come true!"

Daunte was starting to see some validity in both Caesar and Futch's reluctance in associating with Narcissists.

"Have you seen this skirt?" Josephine crooned, spinning around in a wide circle. She twirled her parasol in time with the spin of her skirt. "Only true DIVAS of Armes wear these kind of skirts!"

"Oh dear," Esmeralda sighed, looking into a compact mirror. She was adorned in exclusively white-stoned jewelry. "I _knew_ I should've worn the other headdress. I don't have enough opals in this headdress!"

"It was one of the most heartbreaking moments of my life!" Augustine Nabor declared dramatically before a captive audience. "I wouldn't have ever been able to face Vincent without it! I can barely face him now as it is!"

"You needn't worry so much, Vincent!" another Narcissist assured him. "Sir Vincent is coming down the stairs! I'm sure he will understand if you talk to him!"

The Narcissists clamored and clapped aristocratically as three individuals came down the stairs. The man dressed in red in the center was identified to Daunte by Caesar as Milich Oppenheimer. The man to Milich's right brushing off his own shoulder dramatically was Vincent De Boule, and the man to Milich's left with his nose buried in a soft pink rose was Simone Verdricci.

"Thank you, thank you all for coming!" Milich announced to the party. Kasios stilled his music as the partygoers clapped again. "It is a wondrous pleasure to see so many— _Caesar_?!" Milich abruptly broke off, his eyes going wide.

"Oh boy," Caesar groaned quietly.

Milich hurried forward, closely followed by Vincent and Simone. Caesar forced a painful smile as Milich grasped his hand. "Caesar Silverberg! I am most honored to have a Silverberg attend my party! How long have you been back in Toran?"

"Just a few days," Caesar said politely. He tried to discreetly pull his hands free, but Milich's grip seemed to be unwavering. "A-Allow me to introduce you to my Lord, Daunte—"

"A _Lord_!" Vincent interjected. He pushed himself forward and did a dramatic bow. "My Lord, you do me honor with your presence! I am the great Vincent De Boule, hero of the Gate Rune War and Dunan Unification War!"

"A-Ah, thank you," Daunte said.

"And _I_ am Simone Verdricci," Simone introduced himself. He almost hit Vincent with the dramatic swing of his arm as he bowed. "Hero of Dunan Unification War!"

"I am honored to meet you as well," Milich greeted Daunte, though his demeanor was a little more subdued. He let Caesar go to shake Daunte's hand. "I am Milich Oppenheimer, former General of the Scarlet Moon Empire and hero of the Gate Rune War."

Daunte was slightly stunned. _The Scarlet Moon Empire? That was the empire that preceded the Toran Republic—which was founded over twenty years ago!_

Yet Milich had a youthful demeanor that did not seem to reveal his actual age. Daunte pondered briefly how old this man was, but Luciano brushed past him to present himself before the trio of Narcissists. "I-I am _so_ honored to meet all of you! I am Luciano, the Pale Viper of Zexan, and I am here to compete in the Male Beauty Contest!"

"That's wonderful to hear!" Vincent laughed. "And thank you for the reminder—attention everyone!" he called out to the partygoers. "The Male Beauty Content will start in approximately five minutes! All participants please go upstairs!"

Luciano hurried for the stairs, as did several other young men dressed in posh clothing. Daunte suddenly found his hand seized and he turned to see Vincent giving him a close look. "I require your assistance, my Lord."

"Uh, yes?" Daunte asked.

"Until this moment, I was in a most precarious position. My guest who was supposed to judge the contest with me came down with a cold. That left only two judges to judge my Male Beauty Contest—Lord Milich and myself. But with your appearance, my Lord, my troubles will be solved."

"Y-You want Lord Daunte to be a judge?!" Gunther asked. He sputtered on a laugh before he broke out into loud laughter.

"It would mean the world to me, my Lord, if you could assist me with this," Vincent said. "Pretty please?"

Daunte looked at him, and then looked at Caesar. The Army Strategist just shrugged at him. He knew he could refuse the offer. After all, he knew nothing about fashion or judging male beauty. Not to mention the fact that he was Luciano's guest to the party. Wouldn't that seem biased against the other contestants?

On the other hand, Vincent was asking him nicely and he knew how much this victory would mean to Luciano. So he shrugged and nodded. "Sure, why not?"

"Oh, thank you!" Vincent threw his arms around him. Daunte thought it was odd that he smelled strongly of roses, but he also knew he shouldn't have been surprised. "Then let's not stand idle any longer! It's time for the Male Beauty Contest to begin!"

Daunt didn't want to appear heartless, but he barely paid attention to the contest. Six men participated, and despite the 'ooing' and awing' of the Narcissists the men all looked the same to Daunte. He looked to his companions and both Caesar and Gunther looked like they were in great pain. Viki looked both bored and oblivious, and Arin had fallen asleep in a chair. Daunte only knew the presentation was over when Vincent tugged on his hand and he went downstairs with Vincent and Milich to choose a winner.

"I thought Ambrose had the best presentation of the night," Vincent said, fixing his wrist cuff.

Daunte had no idea which one of the contestants was Ambrose, but Milich spoke before he could. "Yes, Ambrose certainly had the right airs. But I thought _Luciano_ was the most passionate out of everyone."

"Ah yes, Luciano does have a lot of promise," Vincent agreed. "But Ambrose has…a slight edge on Luciano, I think."

"Perhaps you're right," Milich said. Both men then turned to Daunte. "My Lord, which one do you think was best? Ambrose, Luciano, or one of the other contestants?"

Daunte was baffled as to why _he_ had to be the tiebreaker, and he had a sinking feeling that whoever he chose would be the one that both Vincent and Milich would choose as well.

 _Luciano wants this victory badly, and I know it will hurt him if he doesn't win. I also know that_ _ **he**_ _will know that I did not vote for him if he doesn't win. But this whole thing sounds so ridiculous anyway! It's just a contest! It's not like it will be the last contest ever held by this guy!_

Daunte closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and made his decision.

* * *

"It is time!" Vincent announced when they returned upstairs. "We have chosen a winner for my annual Male Beauty Contest!"

Daunte followed Vincent and Milich onto the stage and tried to ignore the hopeful looks on the contestants faces. Vincent held up his hand for silence. "Everyone…allow me to present to you my newly designed _Rose Brooch_!" out of an inner pocket he pulled out a rose-shaped brooch and held it up for everyone to see. The Narcissists predictably 'ooed' and awed' the Rose Brooch, but Daunte distinctly heard Caesar say, "That looks the same as before!"

"Now," Vincent said, keeping up the dramatics. "The winner of the Male Beauty Contest, and the new owner of this wonderful Rose Brooch…" he paused for an unnecessarily long time, and the Narcissists clamored forward, holding their breaths with anticipation.

After the very long pause, Vincent spun around and gestured to the winner. " _Luciano_!"

"Oh!" Luciano shouted, flailing his hands. Two of the Narcissists onstage immediately burst into tears, and one (Daunte assumed was Ambrose) shouted in outrage and threw his hat upon the floor before stomping on it. The rest clapped good-naturedly for Luciano. The Narcissists in the audience clapped and cheered while Luciano wiped away tears as Vincent presented him the Rose Brooch.

"T-This is the happiest moment of my life!" Luciano sobbed. "I worked so _hard_ for this victory, I cannot believe this is happening!"

Daunte was perplexed by his speech, and he discreetly scooted to the edge of the stage before jumping off. Nobody seemed to notice as he made his way towards the group. "Let's go."

"That was nice of you to give him the victory," Caesar said.

Daunte shrugged as he shook Arin awake. "I didn't know any of the other contestants."

"Let's get out of here," Gunther said. "Don't we have to go and meet with Tir McDohl?"

"Yes, we do," Caesar said.

They headed downstairs, which was empty due to the celebrations on the second floor. As they made their way towards the front door, something caught Daunte's eye. It was a chest directly to the front door's right. He noted that the chest wasn't locked, and he debated opening it. After a moment he glanced over his shoulder to make sure no one was watching them, and opened the chest. The chest was empty except for a tightly-bounded play written on pink paper. He picked it up in his hand and read the title out-loud. "'Imperial Love, Ninth Edition'?"

"Go ahead and take it," Caesar said. "Lord Milich has a million of those lying around, he won't miss this. It's based off a book he wrote about the Gate Rune Wars, but I would advise that you take _anything_ written in that play with a grain of salt. Lord Milich kind of…embellishes history."

"How so?" Daunte asked.

"Well, the last time I saw a production of _Imperial Love_ , it depicted Lord Milich single-handedly defeating Emperor Barbarossa," Caesar said. "But Apple told me that Master Tir didn't even select Lord Milich for his party when he stormed the castle." He shrugged. "Every time he re-releases his play and book it becomes more dramatic and more historically inaccurate. Hopefully this edition is more accurate?" he took the play from Daunte, quickly flipped through it, and handed it back to Daunte. "It's not. But you might as well take it."

Daunte complied, and shoved the play into his bag before they hurried out the front door.

"I'm hungry," Arin complained once they were back out in Gregminster's square. "The food at that party looked weird."

"It was good we didn't eat there anyway," Caesar said, leading the way across the square. "We'll have plenty of room for Gremio's stew."

"You mentioned that we're surprising Tir McDohl at his house," Gunther said. "What if he gets upset at our intrusion?"

"Oh, don't worry about it," Caesar reassured them. "I said it before, his home is open to the public. He's usually away but we got lucky enough to be in town at the same time as him."

Daunte felt butterflies in his stomach as they came to a stop at the front door of a modest-sized mansion. It felt more like a home than Milich's mansion, and it surprisingly wasn't as large. He was nervous about meeting the hero of the Gate Rune War, and he hoped he would make the best impression.

 _Well, we're kind of intruding on his house so we might not make the best initial impression._

Caesar knocked on the door, and the group waited patiently. After a few moments the front door abruptly swung open, revealing an exasperated-looking brunette woman in late her forties. "For the last time, we do not want to be bothered!"

"Hello, Cleo," Caesar greeted, grabbing the front door before she could slam it shut. "It's been a long time. How are you faring?"

"Oh—Caesar?" Cleo looked surprised to see him, and to Daunte's relief she visibly relaxed. "When did you get back to Toran? I heard you were back in Harmonia!"

"Not quite, I was in Nagarea."

" _Nagarea_?! Isn't that on the Southern Continent?!"

"Quite. Let me introduce you—this is my Lord, Daunte, and his little brother Arin. This is Gunther, you remember Viki, and I'm certain Sharon is still arguing with her mother."

Cleo also looked surprised to see Viki, and almost spoke to the girl. But she shook her head and looked to Caesar. "Well, what brings you all here?"

"I understand that Master Tir has returned," Caesar said, keeping his tone low. "I would like to introduce my Lord to himself. Would it be all right if we come in to meet him?"

Cleo blinked, and she clearly looked conflicted by his offer. She swallowed thickly, and Daunte felt a spike of discomfort for putting her in this position. "I…uh—"

"Absolutely not."

This sharp voice startled the group, and a man in his late forties came to the door to stand beside Cleo. He wore his faded blonde hair in a long ponytail, and there was a cross-shaped scar on his left cheek. He was frowning deeply at Daunte's group. "Master Tir has come home to relax. He didn't come home to be gawked at by a couple of strangers."

"Oh Gremio, _I'm_ not a stranger," Caesar said, stepping forward. "Neither is Viki. You can trust us."

Gremio also looked briefly stunned to see Viki, but his expression remained hardened. "No exceptions, not even for a Silverberg. We're deeply offended that all of you came to us, unannounced, to make demands."

"But if sent word ahead, wouldn't Master Tir and you have just slipped away?" Caesar asked.

"That's beside the po—I mean, what do you dare accuse me of?!" Gremio seemed to be getting more and more upset with them. "Master Tir has been through enough, I will not subject him to anymore discomfort!"

"Discomfort?" Viki asked. "I-Is Master Tir okay?!"

"Master Tir and Gremio rarely return to Gregminster because President Lepant insists on a large welcoming ceremony," Cleo explained. "No matter the precautions that are taken, they are usually mobbed by overenthusiastic citizens."

"This time was the worst," Gremio fumed. "They ripped the shirt off of Master Tir's back! Just ripped it to tiny pieces, and then _gloated_ about having a piece of him! It was appalling!"

"Master Tir's back and upper arms were scratched up as well," Cleo added. "So I hope you understand our desire to be left alone."

"We understand," Caesar said. "But we—"

"No buts!" Gremio exploded. His shout even startled Cleo. "Master Tir will _not_ be disturbed! Now please be on your way, and do not bother us again!"

The two retreated into the entryway to close the front door, but Daunte shot his hand out and stopped it. "Please, wait! I apologize for our rudeness, but it's very important that I speak to Master Tir!"

"I already said no to Caesar," Gremio told Daunte sharply. "What makes you think I'll allow you in, when I don't even know you?"

"I'm the leader of Nagarea's Liberation Army," Daunte quickly spoke. Both Gremio and Cleo started upon hearing this. "I'm trying to free my country from tyranny. I know that Master Tir freed this country from tyranny, and I know that he was around the same age as me when he did it! I feel connected to him, and I want to learn from him his experiences as leader so that I know what I must do to lead! I-I know I'm imposing on you, but please!" he released the front door and bowed deeply. "Please give me this chance to meet with him!"

Both Gremio and Cleo exchanged a long look of silence. Finally, Gremio said, "We'll be right back." and closed the front door.

Daunte slowly straightened, and looked to Caesar. "I…My appeal didn't work?"

"Actually, no," Caesar said. "Gremio is going to talk to Master Tir about letting us in. Good work, my Lord."

"How so?"

"The fact that he's going to talk to his Lordship about letting you in means we're most likely going to be let inside," Gunther said, grinning. "If we had no chance then they would've just dismissed it again."

"So we can have stew now?" Arin asked. The group laughed.

Five minutes later, the front door opened again and Gremio quickly gestured to them. "Master Tir would like to invite you all to have dinner with us."

"Thank you so much!" Daunte said, feeling relief.

"If you make my Master uncomfortable, you'll be asked to leave," Gremio said sternly. Daunte nodded his understanding.

The house smelled wonderful as Gremio led them inside. He took them upstairs and into a large dining room. A giant pot was set up in the center of the long table. Cleo and a heavily-muscular man in his late forties were sitting to the left. Caesar quickly told Daunte that the man's name was Pahn. And across the table from them…

Gremio moved forward. "Master, you remember Caesar Silverberg and Viki. This is Lord Daunte, Arin, and Gunther."

Daunte felt a slight jolt as he took in Tir McDohl. It felt surreal to finally meet the hero of the Gate Rune War for the first time. Tir stood up from his chair and nodded to the group. Daunte was stunned to look at him. Tir—looked like a teenager. He still looked the same age as Daunte, even though the Gate Rune War ended two decades earlier.

 _That was before I was even born. But then how does he look the same?_

" _Tir McDohl_!" Arin suddenly shouted. He ran around the table and to Tir's side. "Wow, it's you! It's really you! You look just like my figurine!" he ruffled through his bag and pulled out the figurine in question. "Can I have your autograph? Pretty please?"

Cleo and Pahn burst into loud laughter while Tir stared blankly at the young child. Gremio even looked like he was choking on laughter as he added chairs to the table. "The stew is ready. Let's eat it while it's hot."

Tir remained silent, but was kind enough to sign Arin's figurine as they settled down for dinner. Daunte started off with a large spoonful of stew, and even though it burned the inside of his mouth he was astonished by how delicious it was. Before he could help himself he was rapidly eating the stew without pause.

"This is amazing!" Gunther praised. "Can we get a copy of the recipe? I would like to have this at our HQ!"

"The recipe is my secret," Gremio said. "But thank you for the compliment."

"Where did you both travel to this time, Master Tir?" Caesar asked.

"We went to Kanakan," Gremio answered. "We tried to enter a drinking contest, but Master Tir wasn't allowed due to his perceived age."

"But you managed to bring back a bottle of their famous alcohol," Cleo said, smiling. "Thank you for such a lovely gift, Master Tir."

"You're welcome, Cleo," Gremio said.

Pahn added nothing to the conversation. Within seconds he'd finished off his bowl of stew and helped himself to another. He was eating loudly and sloppily.

"Would you like me to teleport you to your next destination, Master Tir?" Viki offered.

"Thank you for the offer Viki, but we'll continue to travel on foot," Gremio said.

Daunte looked between Tir and Gremio in silence. Tir focused solely on eating and did not speak. Gremio did all of the speaking for him. It puzzled Daunte slightly. _Does he not like to talk? But how can I speak to him from leader to leader if he allows someone else to speak for him?_

"Master Tir, how old are you?" Daunte asked before he could stop himself.

Both Cleo and Pahn flinched at the question, and even Caesar grimaced. Gremio looked visibly upset, and even started rising out of his seat. Daunte quickly realized he'd offended Tir McDohl, and quickly opened his mouth to apologize.

Before he could say anything however, Tir raised his right hand. Gremio noticed the gesture and quickly sat down. Tir calmly folded his hands on the table and held Daunte's gaze. Finally, he spoke. "I'm forty-one years old, Lord Daunte."

"F-Forty-one?!" Arin exclaimed, his eyes going wide. "B-But you look like a kid!"

The atmosphere became more and more awkward as the seconds ticked by. Daunte could feel the dirty looks Gremio, Cleo, and Pahn were giving him, but he couldn't look away from Tir. After a moment, Caesar spoke up. "Oh, wow! Forty-one? Look fast, Daunte, because you'll know what you look like when _you_ turn forty-one!"

"What do you mean?" Cleo said.

Daunte leaned forward and pulled off his right glove. Pahn exclaimed in shock when he saw Daunte's battered hand, but Daunte brushed it off and pointed to the Rune symbol on the back of his hand. "The Rune of Restoration. I was chosen by a True Rune."

This revelation helped the mood considerably, and the table relaxed. "A-Ah," Gremio said, looking embarrassed. "You possess a True Rune as well, Lord Daunte?"

"Too?" Arin asked.

Tir removed his right glove and showed Daunte his hand. Daunte was startled to see that his right looked slightly deformed. On the back of his hand was a Rune symbol. The Rune symbol was golden brown, and…it was odd. It looked like it was in the shape of a deformed sickle.

"This is the Soul Eater Rune," Tir said, his tone turning dark. "The Rune of Life and Death."

"Soul Eater?" Gunther echoed, making a face. "That sounds ominous."

"It _is_ ominous," Tir agreed bluntly. "It literally eats souls."

Daunte gaped at Tir in shock and horror. Caesar spoke in a gentle voice. "The Soul Eater has been known to eat the souls of the people closest to the Rune bearer. It is known as a Cursed Rune because of this."

"The Rune has not acted for a long time, but I must be vigilant," Tir said. "As the power dictates it will take the soul of anyone close to me. For this reason, it would be best if I remain alone, but—"

"Master Tir, we've told you this before" Gremio interjected harshly. "We won't abandon you. We won't allow you to ever be alone!"

"But the Rune may act at any time," Tir reminded him. "It may take your soul, Gremio. No—it _will_ take your soul if you remain with me."

"As if I could ever be scared of some Rune," Gremio huffed, shaking his head. "You don't need to worry about me, Master. Or any of us, really."

"That's right," Cleo said. "Whatever happens, happens. In the meantime, we're here for you."

"Yeah," Pahn said around a mouthful of food.

Tir clearly looked frustrated by their responses. "You don't understand the—"

"What does the Rune of Restoration do?" Cleo asked Daunte, deliberately interrupting Tir.

Daunte shrugged. "I-I don't know the full extent of its power yet. Lady Leknaat however told me it was the parent Rune of the Resurrection Rune."

"Oh, you met Lady Leknaat?" Gremio asked. "I didn't know she was living on the Southern Continent now!"

"Wait, you MET Lady Leknaat?!" Caesar shouted, jumping to his feet. He looked stunned. "Why didn't you tell me sooner, Lord Daunte?"

Daunte stared at him for long moment before speaking. "I…didn't tell you before?"

Caesar waved a hand and sat back down. "Never mind, we'll discuss this later."

"Who's Lady Leknaat?" Gunther asked.

"She's a lady in white who teleports in a ball of light!" Arin said.

"That sounds about right," Pahn agreed.

"Lord Daunte."

Daunte looked back at Tir. The intense look on the other boy's face gave Daunte pause. "Ah…yes?"

"I hope you're prepared for the responsibility of being a True Rune user."

Daunte looked at Caesar, who nodded to him. Daunte also nodded. "I…I feel that I'm prepared for the responsibility. I've had the Rune for a few months now, and it's never given me any problems."

"Good," Tir said bluntly. "Because having the power of a True Rune comes with a heavy price. If you're not prepared to pay this price, then it will destroy you."

Daunte stared at him stunned again. Tir stared right back at him unflinchingly. His statement stunned the room, and silence filled the room once more.

"O-Oh!" Gremio suddenly shouted, standing up. "I see everyone is done eating! Let me go get dessert!" he hurried from the room.

The silence still hung in the air for several moments, and Daunte continued to stare back at Tir. Then Pahn said, "I'm still hungry" and grabbed the pot from the center of the table.


	43. Chapter Five: Part Six

I'm sorry for the delay in posting this. I've had a terrible time of it this past year. In addition to being diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis, in 2017 alone I've lost three family members. All of these events have knocked me for a loop. I'm doing a bit better now, but I'm still sorry for the delay in publishing this.

* * *

Part Six

The group returned to the inn that night full and in better spirits than they all expected to. They had met the President of the Toran Republic and they met the hero of the Gate Rune War. It was surreal how much they accomplished in just one day.

For Daunte, however…the whole situation had felt a lot more awkward than he'd wanted it too. He did feel a kinship with Tir McDohl but instead of forging a bond with the other man he'd instead offended him and made him feel uncomfortable. That night he went to bed in lesser spirits than his companions.

Except…

In the dead of night Daunte woke to feel a peculiar sensation in his right hand. He looked the True Rune and saw that it was reacting. For a moment he felt nervous, but the moment quickly passed. It almost seemed like the Rune was trying to tell him something…

Seconds later he was dressed and hurrying down the stairs. The halls were naturally deserted but he took care not to create a lot of noise or disturb anyone as he reached the ground floor. He hesitated for a moment, but then mustered his courage and stepped outside the inn.

"Lord Daunte."

Daunte's eyes widened as he recognized Tir McDohl standing three meters away. He was alone, and his expression was coldly intense. Daunte swallowed thickly and approached the other man. "A-Ah, Master Tir. What are you doing out here at this time of night?"

"To see you, of course," Tir said bluntly. "I wanted to apologize for my behavior at dinner. You were my guest and I was impudent with you."

"No, you don't have anything to apologize for," Daunte said, shaking his head. " _I_ was the one who was rude."

"How long have you had your True Rune?" Tir asked him.

Daunte shrugged. "Less than a year."

"While I wanted you to be aware of what it means to be a True Rune user, I should have been more tactful when we spoke."

"I understand that this Rune technically grants me immortality," Daunte said, pressing his left hand over the back of his right. "I can still die, and the Rune can leave me at any time, but I know that while I hold the Rune of Restoration I won't age and I will almost be invulnerable."

"This is all true," Tir said. "You will not physically change. The world around you is going to change, but you will not. That child with you—Arin, was his name?"

"Yes, he's my brother."

"He will continue to grow and you won't. You will watch him grow to be the same age as you, and then older than you. You will watch him grow to be an elderly man, and then you will watch him die. And you will remain the same."

Daunte did not like putting things in this context. Arin was the only family he had left, and the only reason that he even had the Rune of Restoration to begin with was because he was trying to save Arin's life. He didn't know how long the Rune would remain with him, although he hoped that the Rune would eventually move on. But he also knew there was a distinct possibility that it would _never_ move on and he might be stuck with it forever. Stuck in the body of a seventeen-year-old while the people he cared about grow old and die, and the world changes and leaves him behind.

 _This is what Tir is going through now, isn't it? Cleo, Pahn, and Gremio are clearly aging but Tir is not. They will eventually be gone, and Tir will be alone. But it's even worse for Tir because he doesn't know if his friends will die of natural causes or if their souls will be eaten by his True Rune._

"I…hope that the Rune of Restoration will find a worthier host than I before that happens," Daunte admitted softly. "I didn't ask for this Rune. Arin was dying and I sought the Rune to put it on Arin to save his life. But the Rune chose me, and I've been slowly but surely learning its powers. You've put a lot into perspective for me, Master Tir. Thank you."

"I don't want you to dwell on something like this now," Tir said. "You have an army to lead and a country to liberate. Put this out of your mind for now and focus on the tasks at hand. Use the Rune of Restoration for the greater good…and be thankful that you don't have the Soul Eater. Be thankful that you were chosen by the parent rune of the Resurrection Rune, and that you wield the positive power of life. But you still must be prepared that the Rune may ask much of you. More of you than you think you can give."

Daunte looked down at Tir's right hand in silence for a long moment. He then looked up. "This is a selfish request, but would you be interested in joining my Army?"

"Thank you for the offer, but I must decline," Tir said. "I led an army during the Gate Rune War, and I temporarily fought during the Dunan Unification War. I would like to be done with wars and live as peacefully as possible. Having the Soul Eater in close proximity to a battlefield again would also not be a good idea."

Daunte saw his point and nodded. "I understand. I have one more question for you though."

"Yes?"

"Why didn't you become President of Toran? Why do you refuse to hold power in the country you liberated?"

Tir shrugged. "It wasn't my goal."

Daunte blinked. "Eh?"

"I joined the Liberation Army during the Gate Rune War for self-preservation. I was hunted by the Scarlet Moon Empire because of the Rune on my hand, which was bestowed upon me by my best friend Ted. Odessa Silverberg offered me protection and recruited me."

Daunte stiffened. _Silverberg?_

"But then Odessa died and her brother Mathiu refused to lead the Army," Tir said nonchalantly. "So _I_ became the leader. However, I couldn't deny that the people were suffering under the rule of Emperor Barbarossa, and I did want to free them from tyranny. But I never had any desire to rule the country. But my Army was _very_ insistent on my ruling, so I left with Gremio. Lepant took over as President, and as you can tell he's done a stellar job running things. Unfortunately, every time I return to Gregminster he tries to pressure me to take over as President. I've refused but he feels that I'm better for the job than he is."

"…I see," Daunte said, not knowing how to respond.

"Truthfully it's better that I not take power," Tir said. He reached down with his left hand to cover his right hand. "Ted may have passed the Soul Eater to me, but the Rune has chosen me as its host and it will not leave me. With this Rune I can kill people and swallow their souls, but the Rune is sentient. Anyone who has long-term exposure to this Rune is at risk of losing their soul to this Rune. If I were to take power and become President of the Toran Republic, I put everyone in Gregminster at risk. My friends are already at risk, but they…" he sucked in a sharp breath and clenched his teeth, and his face twisted up painfully.

"You warned your friends at dinner," Daunte recalled. "But they—"

"They won't listen to me," Tir interrupted. "They are at risk, Gremio most especially. If they remain by my side, they will die. This isn't an if or a maybe—they _will_ die. The Soul Eater will claim their soul. But they don't care. Gremio, Cleon, Pahn—none of them care about the risk! They're just so afraid of my being alone that they'll risk an early grave just to keep me company! Never mind that as I am a True Rune possessor I'm going to _long_ outlive all of them anyways!" Tir was breathing heavily, and he gripped his hand tight over the Rune.

Daunte looked at his hand, not knowing what to say. He swallowed thickly, and tried to formulate words to somehow comfort Tir. But nothing came to mind, and he felt terrible about it.

Tir spoke again, ending the prolonged and uncomfortable silence. "Your fate as the host of the Rune of Restoration will not be as harsh as mine. But the life you're going to live will not be pleasant. I hope you're prepared for it."

"…I don't know if I am," Daunte said softly. "But I'm going to use my Rune for the greater good. To help the people of my country."

"Will you assume power once you're successful?"

Daunte was taken aback by the question. All he could was shrug. "I don't know. I don't even know what kind of government I want Nagarea to have after the war."

"I see."

Daunte's breath hitched, and he bowed. "Thank you for everything you've told me, Master Tir."

"You're welcome," Tir said. "It was nice meeting you, Lord Daunte. I'm certain we'll see each other again someday."

Daunte glanced up. _Someday? What does that mean?_

Daunte got his answer the following morning. Apple woke the group up and told them that Tir had left before sunrise with Gremio. The citizens of Gregminster were disappointed that they didn't get to have a proper goodbye with their hero, and Daunte himself was disappointed that he wasn't able to spend more time with Tir and learn from him. But the wielder of the Soul Eater Rune did not seem to want to remain in one place for very long…and Daunte suspected it had to do with the True Rune affixed to his hand.

 _They said it was a cursed Rune, right? And Master Tir said that anyone close to him was doomed to have their souls eaten by that Rune. But Gremio, Cleo, and Pahn didn't seem to care. I almost feel like I lucked out with the True Rune_ _ **I**_ _got. I feel terrible for Master Tir…and I have a feeling that this won't be the last time I see him._

… _Well, since we both have True Runes we're bound to meet up again eventually._

Daunte never gave it much thought—the implications of being chosen by a True Rune. He'd wanted the Rune of Restoration for Arin, and even after reluctantly accepting the Rune he hadn't thought about what his life truly meant now that he was the bearer of a True Rune. But by meeting Tir McDohl he now had a rough idea of what it all meant.

 _So…I'm not going to age. Until this Rune leaves me I'm going to physically remain seventeen forever._

The thought had bother him last night. Now he felt the sting for exactly five seconds before forcing himself to shrug it off. _Well, it will be awkward watching Arin grow older than me…if the Rune of Restoration remains with me for that long._

Still feeling immense disappointment from Tir having left in the night, Daunte and his group followed Apple downstairs to eat breakfast in the inn's dining room. As they reached the ground floor, Daunte quickly recognized the young man standing at the counter, fussing dramatically at Marie. And as he recognized the person, the familiar sound of an accordion filled the air.

"My Lord! Lord Daunte!" Luciano raced over to them. Daunte saw his prized Rose Brooch pinned to his shirt. Luciano grabbed Daunte's hands. "My Lord, I've looked everywhere for you!"

"But everyone knows we would be staying at this inn," Caesar said with confusion.

Luciano didn't seem to hear Caesar and instead kept his eyes on Daunte. "Lord Daunte, you have my eternal thanks. I know I would not have won the Male Beauty Contest without your deciding vote, and for that I am in your debt."

 _Was it really that obvious I was only going to vote for him?_ Daunte wondered. But Luciano squeezed his hands tighter as he continued. "I owe you everything. I _must_ return this favor to you! Name any price, and I shall fulfill it!"

Daunte was briefly at a loss for what to do. He knew he could tell Luciano to go away, or ask for money, or attempt to recruit the Narcissist. Luciano wore a sword so he would hopefully serve a useful purpose in his Liberation Army. Unless the sword was decorative.

 _Well he insists on repaying me, so I might as well get some use out of him._

"If you're up for travel," Daunte said. "I'm leading an Army in Nagarea. That's on the Southern Continent. If you feel you must repay me, then I invite you to join my Army."

"…Really?" Gunther said with dull shock.

But Luciano's face lit up, and he nodded enthusiastically. "Since you worked ever so hard for my victory, Lord Daunte, I can do no better than to work hard for yours!" he took a couple steps backwards and posed dramatically with his Rose Brooch. "I swear to all the heavens that Luciano will lend his sword to your cause!"

"We're happy to have you," Daunte said, though he was genuinely shocked that Luciano would easily join a foreign Army of a stranger just because said stranger got him a brooch. _But hopefully he can help us._ "Our ship is on the outskirts of Lukiae Ende Towayo. Feel free to meet us there."

"Oh, I shall! Thank you so much!" Luciano did a full bow before Daunte and ran out of the inn. With his departure, the accordion faded away.

"Congratulations on a new recruit," Caesar said, forcing a smile. "Although here's hoping that he doesn't take up residence in our main building. If I have to hear the music that follows him every day, I might throw myself from the roof!"

"You're sounding more melodramatic than him," Apple teased him. She then glanced at Daunte. "What will you do today?"

"I would still like to meet with President Lepant," Daunte said. "And learn the foundations of a Republic. Hopefully we'll receive a reply from Dunan while we're here."

"Good idea my Lord," Caesar said. "As you've already seen, President Lepant is _very_ opinionated about everything so you're bound to learn a lot from him."

 _Hopefully he doesn't shout so much,_ Daunte thought.

* * *

Two days later, Daunte received a reply from the Dunan Republic. Penned by Shu, he thanked them for their inquiry and they were given a formal invitation to Muse, Dunan's capital, to meet President Teresa Wisemail herself. Although the letter itself sounded a bit sarcastic, Apple reassured them that it was part of Shu's nature and that it was a sincere invitation.

While Daunte was thrilled to be granted an audience with the President of Dunan herself, he was slightly disappointed that he was venturing to another country run under a Republic. In the two days he was at Gregminster he did not observe any political meetings or exercises related to Toran itself, but Lepant was very helpful in teaching him the foundations of the government. Daunte learned that the Toran Republic ran as a "full-presidential system", where the president has a central political role. It meant that while Lepant had many political advisors and aides, he also had primary political power in Toran, though they held presidential elections every four years. It did not appear that the role of President in Toran had a term-limit, as Lepant had won every consecutive election (and had sometimes run completely unopposed) since he first became president over twenty years prior.

It seemed intimidating for one person to hold so much power, but Lepant seemed to wield it with ease. And he informed Daunte that Toran's style of a republic was not how all republics were run, although he also advised Daunte to research and experience for himself how other republics were run.

 _But the people of Toran seem happy with how Lepant runs things…or at least the people of Gregminster seem happy._

They had not been permitted to leave Gregminster for their stay, but they had made the most of their visit. Daunte found several recipes in the shops and he knew Yasaka would be thrilled to have Toran recipes. He also found cabbage seeds to give to May, but no old books or plays. They still enjoyed their stay in the capital, even with limited mobility.

With the news about them traveling north to Dunan they were greeted by Milia, who offered the Dragon Knights to escort them to the Toran-Doran border.

"You'll get there in no time," Milia promised. "Although I must insist that my daughter not travel with you to Dunan."

"I'm not a child!" Sharon protested loudly. "I pledged myself to Lord Daunte's cause, and—"

"You disappeared to the Southern Continent without telling anyone," Milia reminded her for the umpteenth time in a harsh voice. "You're coming home with me, and that's all there is to it!"

Daunte knew better than to argue with a mother, even though he was the leader of the Liberation Army. He didn't want to lose Sharon or any of the dragons who were attached to her, but it appeared that they didn't have any choice.

Caesar also extended an invitation for Apple to join them to Dunan (and Daunte thought of recruiting her), but Apple politely declined. She explained that she'd been to Dunan just recently and a return trip was unnecessary. She also seemed to read Daunte's mind and declined joining the Army.

"I have many other responsibilities that I need to attend to," Apple explained. "Caesar is more than capable of helping you. Besides, my previous work is…not up to caliber."

Caesar had insisted otherwise, but Apple still refused. Daunte was disappointed that he lost out on recruiting a veteran strategist but he respected her wishes and did not push her.

Gregminster did give them a warm send-off before they left, although Daunte was surprised when Lepant requested to see him in person one last time before he left. Daunte was escorted to Lepant's office, where he saw Sheena sleeping on the couch along the far left wall, and Eileen was arranging flowers on the coffee table in front of Lepant's desk. Daunte expected Lepant to say goodbye to him in person, but Lepant surprised him with an unexpected question. "I've heard that you spoke to Master Tir in private before he left Gregminster. Is this correct?"

"Yes, sir, that's correct," Daunte said.

"Did Master Tir express any interest in taking over for me?"

Daunte was startled by the question, but quickly answered. "He said no."

"Did he say why?"

Daunte shrugged. "He said he didn't want to become President."

Lepant sighed heavily, and rubbed a hand over his face. After a long moment he looked up and forced a smile. "Thank you, Lord Daunte. I won't delay your departure any longer."

Daunte said his thanks and his farewells and departed. He was puzzled as to why Lepant had pressed him like that, but then he remembered what Tir had said to him previously, and how Lepant kept trying to step down so Tir could assume power.

 _President Lepant may feel unworthy of the job, but for all intents and purposes he's done a great job. Still, he's a man in his sixties and he's been running Toran ever since the Scarlet Moon Empire was abolished. Maybe—he's looking to step down? Maybe he's also having difficulty finding a suitable replacement for himself and he believes only Master Tir can do it?_

… _But it's best that Master Tir not take power, especially since he doesn't want it._

"What did President Lepant need of you, my Lord?" Caesar asked when Daunte returned.

Daunte quickly and discreetly told him their conversation, and Caesar shook his head. "Nothing will convince the President that he's done a good job. He will always feel that Tir McDohl is superior to him in everything, and that all of his accomplishments pale in comparison to Tir's." Caesar smiled lazily. "But since Tir McDohl didn't ever want to become President, I think we're better off without him as our head of state."

Daunte was surprised by his blunt dismissal of a national hero, but he did see Caesar's point. It certainly gave Daunte a lot to think about.

Milia allowed Futch to lead the escort to the border (while she stayed behind with Sharon), and they quickly took off. Riding on a dragon still took a lot to get used to, and Daunte was somewhat relieved that it wasn't something he would have to get used to. But Arin loved riding the dragons, and seeing his little brother's joy did make Daunte feel better.

Once he was more comfortable with the height, Daunte looked straight down to see the landscape of Toran below them. The countryside looked rich, and he was _very_ impressed by how much ground they were covering, but he was also disappointed. Toran was the land that Caesar, Mihr, and Sharon came from. He would've liked the opportunity to explore the country and visit other towns.

 _But remember you're a foreigner in a country that knows very little about Nagarea, Daunte. You cannot travel freely like that. Of course, I can't necessarily travel freely in Nagarea can I?_ He snorted at the irony.

"What's so funny?" Futch asked him, though his tone was not accusatory. Daunte was amazed he could hear him so easily with the wind blowing so harshly in their faces. "Nothing," Daunte replied. "I was remembering something funny."

"Oh, you mean like that time Jantu caught Yaman cheating with bets over Mihr's duel with Gunther?" Arin chimed him. He laughed hysterically. "Jantu grabbed Yaman by his ankles and shook his pockets empty by hanging him upside down!"

Futch barked out a laugh at this. " _That_ I wish I could've seen!"

Daunte's instinctive reaction was to ask him if he wanted to join the Liberation Army, but he quickly stopped himself. Futch was a Dragon Knight. It would be completely inappropriate to try and recruit him when he already had obligations to another army.

 _I'll have other opportunities to possibly recruiting other people for my Army. Maybe I'll find volunteers in Dunan?_

It took just two hours to reach the Toran-Dunan border. It was still late morning, which was surprising and a relief. Daunte and his group disembarked the dragons once again onto unsteady legs as the Toran border patrol rushed over to them. "The Dragon Knights! Are these the diplomats from Nagarea you're escorting?"

"Yes," Futch replied. "Is the Dunan escort here?"

"Yes, they're waiting across the border. But tread carefully—they don't look happy."

A slight feeling of dread settled over Daunte, and he quickly looked at Caesar. But his strategist looked unconcerned so Daunte deliberately kept an outward appearance of calm as he looked at his comrades. "Let's go." He took Arin by the hand.

"Send word ahead when you're ready to leave Muse," Futch told them. "We'll meet you here to escort you back to Lukiae Ende Towayo."

"Thank you for your help, Futch," Daunte said, bowing slightly. His party quickly followed suit and bowed as well.

Futch for his part looked surprised by Daunte's thanks. "I'm just following orders, you know. It's not anything special." Bright let out a loud snort and nudged Futch with his nose. Futch snapped his head around and glared. "What does _that_ mean?!"

Daunte decided he didn't want to glean what Bright may have said to Futch and led the way with the Toran guards towards the Dunan part of the border. His heart started hammering in his chest the closer they got. _I've just visited a country that survived a great war thanks to a hero. I wonder what Dunan is like?_

They were marched the short distance to the Dunan soldiers waiting for them. They were dressed in orange and black military uniforms, and all of them looked stiff. "Salutations! We've brought the diplomats from the Theocracy of Nagarea!"

"We've heard," the soldier in front said stiffly. It was a woman in her mid-twenties. She wore her yellow blonde hair short in a buzz-cut, and she was glaring at them with silver eyes. "You've come a long way just to speak about government with our President, haven't you?"

"Yes we have," Caesar said, stepping forward. He held up Shu's letter. "We are here by invitation."

The woman looked to Caesar, and very slightly relaxed. "You're Caesar Silverberg."

"That I am," Caesar greeted. "This is my Lord, Daunte. Are you part of the escort to Muse?"

"We are." The woman gestured to herself. "I am Viola, a lieutenant in the Dunan Republic Army. We will personally escort you to and from Muse. We are going to be watching all of you carefully, and if you do anything suspicious we will arrest you on the spot. Is that understood?"

Daunte didn't know why Viola was being so hostile, but he supposed that it was just part of her job. He nodded stiffly to her. "Understood, ma'am."

"We will follow the path here to the north where we'll reach the town of Banner. We won't stop there, though—we'll continue north to the town of Radat, where we will stop. From there we'll continue north, cross Lake Dunan, and reach Coronet. From Coronet we'll head northeast to Dunan. It should take us about a week to reach Muse. Does anyone have any questions?"

Daunte was amazed by how efficient she was. With the way Viola conveyed her orders, he knew they would most definitely reach Muse in seven days. He felt the urge to try to recruit her, but he knew she already had very little patience with them anyways and held his tongue.

Just as Viola said, they were escorted north to Banner. Along the way they ran into an assortment of beasts—tigers, bears, and the like—but the Dunan soldiers fought the monsters off on their behalf. Daunte was happy for the help, although he lamented the loss of battle experience and Potch that fighting the monsters themselves would bring.

Overall the trip through Dunan was a blur. Without the Dragon Knights they traveled on foot, and they went through three cities before reaching Muse, all of which were fishing villages. It gave Daunte more exposure to the Dunan countryside, although the Dunan soldiers were clearly hurrying them. Viola was incredibly unsociable, and said very little to them except to prod them along and encourage them to keep moving. But she was formidable warrior worthy of her title of lieutenant; she wielded a halberd with ease and made liberal use of a Thunder Rune. Most of the time the other soldiers under her command didn't even need to fight—she just did it solo. Daunte was impressed, and he could tell that the rest of his party was impressed.

Although Gunther didn't help matters by repeatedly flirting with Viola.

But their trip through Dunan was without incident, and it only took a few short hours to cross Dunan Lake. Daunte was amazed by the lake. The color of the water was onyx, but the lake looked clean and pristine. Daunte saw many fish swimming in the water, and—

"Whoa!" Daunte shouted, flying backwards and crashing into Gunther.

"W-What's the matter?" Arin asked fearfully.

"What is it?" Viola said. Both her soldiers and her snapped to attention.

"I-I-I…" Daunte pointed to the water. "I saw a giant octopus!"

The soldiers visibly relaxed, and Viola cracked a very slight smile. "Oh, that? That's Chuchara. He's a kraken, and his father Abizboah served in the Dunan Army during the Unification War."

Daunte gaped at her. _A_ _ **kraken**_ _served in the Dunan Unification War?! Did I hear that correctly?!_

"He's been living in the lake ever since he outgrew his parent's cave," another Dunan soldier said. He laughed softly. "The lake has never been safer since Chuchara moved in! You won't find pirates or smugglers around these parts anymore!"

Daunte glanced at Caesar, who nodded his confirmation. Daunte shook his head, and focused on their destination.

True to Viola's word, they reached Muse within seven days. As Muse had known they were coming, there was a large crowd of civilians at the gate eager to meet the first-known Nagarean's to have ever set foot in Dunan. Daunte could hear the gossip and chatter of thousands of people as they drew closer. A large battalion of soldiers in blue uniforms stood at the city gate, and Daunte tensed briefly. Caesar however put a hand on his shoulder and gave him a reassuring nod. Daunte nodded in kind and they continued moving forward.

At the front of the group of soldiers stood a brown-haired man in his late thirties. His bangs were long in the front, but Daunte saw that he kept his eyes closed. He was dressed in well-tailored clothing, and he had emblems on the front of his coat. Daunte knew that this man was very important, but he also knew that this could not be President Wisemail.

"Lord Chancellor." Viola and her soldiers moved forward and saluted the man. "We have brought the dignitaries from Nagarea."

"Thank you, Lieutenant." The man spoke in a calm and serene voice. Viola stepped aside and the man moved forward towards Daunte's group. He smiled, though his eyes did not open. "It's been a long time, Caesar Silverberg. How have you been?"

"I've been well, Chancellor Klaus," Caesar said. He gestured to Daunte. "This is my commander, Lord Daunte. He is the leader of Nagarea's Liberation Army."

"I'm very pleased to meet you," the Chancellor said, turning to Daunte. "Allow me to introduce myself; I am Klaus Windamier, Chancellor to President Teresa Wisemail. I'm sorry we could not greet you as soon as you all arrived. On behalf of our president, welcome to the Dunan Republic."

* * *

I'm sorry for the short chapter, but I wanted to get this uploaded as quickly as possible. The next chapter is going to be longer, and it should be up by next week. And don't forget to vote in the fanfiction polls! You can find the link on my profile page.


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